The Authors in the Crossover
by Mr. Chaos
Summary: While at writer's convention in New York, acquaintances Temperance Brennan and Richard Castle are drawn into the murder of a prolific writer. Beckett and Booth come to their aid, and the two teams must work together to catch the killer. Part 1 of ABCverse
1. Chapter 1

BONES is the property of Fox and its producers. CASTLE is the property of ABC. All characters from BONES and CASTLE are not owned by the author, and the author has no connection to said shows. All original characters are products of the author and are not based on any real life person, living or dead.

Please review!

^&^&^&^

Temperance Brennan was bored.

Booth, at a time like this, would say she was mind numbingly bored, which was just strange because the brain could not go numb because of boredom. Numbness was caused by a constriction of blood to a limb, causing the nerve endings to slowly loss sensation. If that were to happen to the brain, the heart would stop, the lungs would deflate, and the body would die.

Granted, Temperance knew that in this situation, Booth would not be bored himself. Quite the opposite, in fact. He would be moving about, bouncing around, as Angela had once stated, like a puppy on a sugar rush, his boyish grin plaster large and proudly as he took in the sights around him.

If he were in this situation. Which he wasn't. Nor would he ever be. Booth wasn't a writer. He didn't type out novels and then have to deal with publishers or agents or…this.

But Temperance was a writer. A great writer, if her reviews and her own honest opinion were considered. Thus, she found herself not in her lab, helping to identify remains or out with Booth investigating a murder. Instead she was here, in New York City in some hotel whose name she had forgotten even though she was sleeping in one of its plush rooms, surrounded by other writers, agents and publishers.

The North American Writer's Convention.

She was sitting inside a small, shed like structure that her agent referred to as a booth, which had at first confused her. Granted, it was square and large, and Booth was large and, again as Angela had said, at times a 'square'. And it had a lot of decorations, though no 'cocky' belt buckles or colorful socks and ties. Instead it was done up with a dark purple fabric stretched along the frame, adorned with printed images of bones…not true bones, as she had pointed out to her agent, but ones that appeared in her clipart folder on her laptop, or that she would find on top of those memos the PR guys at the Jeffersonian would put out when there was some gala that were suppose to look cute but instead looked silly. A stack of her two different novels sat beside her, many more in boxes in the rear of the booth. She sat in a folding chair, a pen in hand, glad that, at long last, this portion of the day was over.

This was her 7th Writcon, and Temperance had learned well how to survive its more frustrating parts, with dos ('smile, be polite, ignore body odor') and don'ts ('don't tell people they are not smart enough to be a anthropologist, don't agree to sign their breasts'). Her new agent, already skittish around her after learning her previous one had been murdered, had heard enough about her to make sure she 'behaved' during these painful periods.

The Fan Signings.

The convention did this every year, opening its doors for 2 to 3 hours to allow fans to talk to their favorite writers, get their books signs, and snap a picture. And it wasn't that Temperance disliked her fans, like some of the writers she had talked to (or could see from her booth grumbling at no-longer-smiling readers). It was that she preferred to be elsewhere, to be working in her lab, than writing her name over and over for hours on end.

But this part of the convention was over. Now she would get time to relax, to get freshened up, perhaps even, if the mood suited her, go to one of the dinners being thrown by the various publishing companies.

She smiled at that. Wouldn't Booth be startled to see her, dressed up not in a lab coat but in a evening dress, drinking champagne and chatting with fellow authors.

On second thought, he would be startled, then disappointed that the dinners were so boring.

Moving to begin packing up her things, she glanced over at some of the gifts she had received. While there was always one or two fans at these things that would give her something strange…like the one fan 3 years back that had come in a cast and presented one of his phalanges, resulting in a call to security…this time there had only be items that, while confusing to her at times, were accepted with thanks. A few photos of fans showing off her book in exotic locations, a rather nicely detailed replica of a femur done in clay that she considered actually putting in her office, and other odds and ends. She picked up the strangest of items, a teddy bear wearing a lab coat and holding a stuffed bone, with a nametake reading "Reich" upon it. This one she would give to Booth…she knew he would say he would give it to Parker, then put in his own apartment.

That made her smile.

Her smile changed when she saw who was approaching her…still a smile, but now with a new meaning.

^&^&^&^

Richard Castle was having the time of his life.

Everything was lining up perfectly to make this the best Writcon ever.

His booth, done up in black fabric with white lightning streaking across it, proclaiming the death of Derek Storm, had been packed with fans wanting autographs. While many of them complained about the death of their hero, the cut out his ex wife had gotten done was wonderful and got most of them to simmer down. It was an artist's rendering of Nikki Storm…and God, if a cut out could turn a man on, this was the one. Of course, the female fans were still upset their dreamboat was dead, but when he informed them that there was a sexy reporter love interest that would make Derek look like a Chud…well, suddenly Mr. Storm was yesterday's news.

While there weren't as many gorgeous women at his last book signing 8 months ago, but there were enough to satisfy him. Besides, he wasn't heartless…the 35 year old secretaries and 70 year old grandmothers with their reading circles made him smile almost as much as the bubbly blondes that wanted him to sign their breasts.

And to make the day complete, his contacts within the judges' pool had told him he was a favorite to win Homer's Ring.

He played with the one that currently adorned his right hand.

Named after the father storytelling, Homer's Ring was given out each year to the author of, according to the organizers, "the most vibrate, daring and engaging novel to come out this year. A piece that had the critics buzzing and every water cooler surrounded by readers discussing every minor detail of the work." The ring was gold, with a single sapphire in the center, the sides listing the year on one side and Homer's name on the other. Authors rarely wore their rings, except for major events like this, lest they be stolen. Since the Convention had begun 33 years ago, 7 rings had been stolen, with only 5 of them being recovered. The black market was full of offers for them, lovers of the arts wanting one of the coveted rings.

Castle had won his 3 years ago for Storm Break, and he just knew that he was going to win again.

"Stop looking at that ring, sweetheart." Martha Rodgers, Richard's eccentric mother proclaimed as she wisked over to him, a plastic bag full of freebies dangling from her arm. "You are not going to win this year."

He glanced up at his mother, raising an eyebrow. "Is that so?"

"I know so." She stated. "You might as well get those thoughts out of your head, because it will only make you depressed, which in turn will make Alexis depressed, and that will mean I will…"

"Be depressed?" Castle questioned.

"Heavens no. It will mean I will be dealing with you too grumps and that will ruin my fun."

Castle smiled sarcastically. "I can feel the love, mother, I truly can."

Alexis, Castle's daughter and the only one in the family that held any sense of responsibility, wandered up, her own plastic bag in hand and a book tucked under her arm. "Do I need to separate you too?" She asked playfully.

"No" "Yes."

Martha glared at her son. "I am merely informing him that he isn't going to win Homer's Ring this year."

Alexis nodded. "She is so right, dad."

Castle smiled. "Thank you Alexis. Here, I got this bear, you can-" He blinked, finally hearing what she had said, his Derek Storm Teddy Bear dangling in his fingers. "Wait…what?"

"Grams is right," Alexis said, holding out the book she had been holding. "I mean, I think you are great…but dad, wow…Daniel Keyes new book…"

Castle stared at the book his daughter was holding. Entitled "East Meets West", he instantly realized he was looking at Daniel Keyes sequel to his Homer's Ring winning novel, "Western Front". Castle was still bitter that Keyes had snatched the award from him a year ago…

"wait a minute…that book doesn't come out for two weeks!" He stood up, only to tumble back when his head struck the top of his booth. "How the hell can it be in the running?"

Martha tisked. "Really, Richard, I warned you about getting emotional. If you must know, Daniel allowed for a limited reading of the book, a few key fans and fellow writers, and there is nothing in the rules stating the book has to have a full release…only that people have read it."

Castle shook his head. "Then how did you get a copy?"

Before Alexis could answer, Martha laughed. "The same way I know Daniel Keyes is going to win."

"You charmed one of the judges?"

"No, silly. I slept with him."

Alexis backed away. "I think I am too young to hear this."

"That makes two of us." Castle muttered, getting out of his Booth and tossing Alexis the Derek bear.

"Where are you going?" His mother called out.

"I need some fresh air." Castle stated, brushing past them. "I'll see you at home."

Martha shook her head, staring at her son's retreating form before turning to her granddaughter. "You see…I warned him about taking this personally."

^&^&^&^

"Richard." Temperance stated, standing up and extending her hand.

"Temperance." Castle answered, cracking a smile. "It is good to see a friendly face."

Richard Castle and Temperance Brennan were not friends. They did not hang out in the same circles, they did not e-mail each other or chat on the phone, or even exchange cards on the holidays, though that was mostly because Temperance found the idea of mailing cards foolish. They did, however, respect one another, and had found, over the last few years, that the convention went by quicker when they were together. Alexis had once referred to them as camp buddies, and Castle had to admit that it was a fair assessment. He and Temperance had developed a ritual for the convention: He would meet up with her the first day, they would chat, then go to their separate ways for the night. The next three days would hold a series of annual events: A visit to a museum, dinner at Castle's apartment, then a-

"Your stride shows you are stressed…your mother?" Temperance said, gauging him carefully.

"I hate it when you do that, Temperance…" Castle moved to the side of her booth, extending a hand to help her out. "But as always, you are right on the money."

The two of them moved to stand in front of her booth, watching as aides scurried about like mice, grabbing the presents and extra books and getting everything cleaned and ready for the next day. Temperance sighed…it was only Thursday, and the convention would run till Sunday night. Three more days of signing…

"Man…I can't believe there are only 3 days left." Castle said, pouting.

Temperance stared at him, only slightly annoyed.

"The only reason you enjoy it is because of the women with enhanced breasts who ask you to sign their flesh…which is counterproductive, as once they wash, the signature will be gone."

Castle shrugged. "This is true."

The two stood in silence for a while, watching the other authors move about, interacting with each other. Nothing too interesting was going on, other than Timothy Black, another writer who put Temperance's colleague Jack Hodgins to shame when it came to government paranoia, arguing with Will Corburn, a writer who had been to more exotic places then most sitting Presidents.

"Those two look happy." Castle commented.

Temperance frowned. "No…I think they are arguing."

Use to how Temperance was, Castle merely smiled. "I was being sarcastic."

"Oh." Temperance reached down, fiddling with her own Homer's Ring. "Any word yet on who will win this year?"

Castle groaned. "According to my loving, supportive mother…"

"That's sarcasm, correct?"

"Yes Temperance."

"Because your mother, while loving and supportive, has a tendency to-"

Castle bumped shoulders with her, laughing. "I get it Doc, thanks." He shook his head, chuckling. "According to my mother, Daniel Keyes is going to win."

"I thought is book wasn't out yet." Temperance questioned.

"Apparently he found a loophole."

"That doesn't sound fair."

"Life isn't fair."

Temperance considered that. "I suppose that is so, if life were a living being, which is isn't, than it could be considered unfair." She glanced over at him. "I would say that you had a chance at winning next year, but I would prefer not to lie."

"Why is that? Heat Wave is going to be huge."

"Perhaps, but have you forgotten Richard, that my book is coming out this year too?" Temperance didn't smile. She wasn't telling a joke or being playful. She honestly, in her mind, felt her book was better, even without reading Castle's.

"Do I hear someone wanting to make a wager?" Castle asked with a smirk.

"Do you?" Temperance asked, once again being quite literal.

Castle nodded. "I believe I do…I think the two of us should have a little bet…see who is the better author."

Temperance smiled. "Perhaps you should pay me now."

"Is that so?" Castle challenged.

Temperance nodded. "Of course. I can produce 50 critics who place me on their Top 10 lists."

"So can I."

"Mine are more accredited."

"Mine are more in touch with the common reader."

"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA!"

Temperance and Castle froze as the scream ripped through the convention hall. While other authors stood about, twisting their heads like prairie dogs, Temperance and Castle were rushing forward, pushing past workers, aides, agents and writers, following the path of the scream.

^&^&^&^

"AAAAAAAAAAAAA!" The woman screamed, hands bound tightly together, fingers twisted and knotted, knuckles white. Surrounding her were several other workers, who had come racing to her aid, now staring at the strange, morbid sight before them.

Castle and Temperance raced forward, making their way to the front.

"…" Temperance turned to Castle. "This is the part where someone yells FBI."

"Or NYPD." Castle stated.

They glanced at each other.

"Police consultant!"

"Forensic anthropologist!"

The workers and looker-ons turned, staring at them only for a moment before looked down once more at the scene before them.

"Whoa." Castle whispered.

They were standing in the loading dock of the hotel, where semis brought in fresh food, supplies and, in the case of the Writcon, pallets filled with new books. One such pallet off to one side, emptied of its contents.

Said contents were piled on top of a body.

Blood oozed along the floor, making those watching take a step back. The body was mostly hidden, only the pale and bloodied face of the victim and their outstretched arm uncovered. The head was turned to one side, jaw open and hanging at a bad angle, it clearly having been broken during death. The hand was clenched tight, a flash of gold just visible.

Temperance moved towards the body, calling for rubber gloves. One of the kitchen workers quickly passed along a pair from his pocket, Temperance putting on the overly large latex gloves before moving to exam the head.

"The back of the skull has been crushed. It appears someone grabbed the head and thrust it against the concrete again and again." She stated, forgetting for a moment that there were no FBI agents around.

Castle rolled his hands. "Keep talking, Temperance." He kneeled down and, using all his strength, managed to pry the hand open. "I got a ring."

"Victim is male…the facial features appear to be of Asian…no, Asian American descent."

"There is a difference?" One of the workers asked.

Castle moved to the pile of books. He let out a long whistle. "East Meets West…" He shook his head. "Daniel Keyes isn't going to be happy when he sees this."

"He won't see it." Temperance said, removing her gloves.

"Why?"

She gestured towards the body. "Because this is Daniel Keyes."

The two authors shared a look.

"I'm called my partner." They both stated, pulling out their cellphones.


	2. Chapter 2

"You know Castle, I almost believed you." Det. Kate Beckett said as she stormed through the loading bay. She was flanked by Esposito and Ryan, as well as several over members of New York's finest. "I believed, just for a moment, that I was going to get one weekend without you around. Be able to get caught up on paperwork, maybe catch a movie…"

Castle flashed a smile. "What can I say, the fates conspire to bring us together."

"That is illogical." Temperance said, standing near the body and watching the officers and Crime Science techs like a guard dog on a leash. "The fates were part of Greek mythology. The only connection to Greece in this case is Homer's Ring."

Beckett glanced at Temperance, studying her for a moment. "Who is she? I thought I asked for this area to be cleared."

"My name is Doctor Temperance Brennan. I am…"

"The author, right?" Ryan asked. "I love your book…those sex scenes are hot!"

"If by hot you mean graphic and cause a rise in hormone levels, then yes." Temperance stated.

Beckett shook her head. "Listen, that's great and everything, and I am sure Castle here offered to let you see the body in exchange for a evening out on the town, but we have work to do, so if you could kindly scoot…"

"Its not like that." Castle said, grimacing as Temperance's jaw locked up in anger at being so casually dismissed. "Temperance is a forensic anthropologist for the…what's that place? The one from the Ben Stiller movie?"

"I don't know who that is, but I work for The Jeffersonian Institute in DC."

"Again, real nice." Beckett stated. "Now, please more to your left so the techs can…" Temperance reached out, stopping one of the techs from coming near the body. "Ok, now you are asking for a trip downtown."

Temperance glared at the detective. "Your men are going to compromise the body. We need to first have the entire scene videotaped, then move to stills. Next, we can do a overview of the scene to determine what needs to be brought back. Who is in charge of particulates?" The officers stared at her, confused. "No one is in charge of gathering particulates?"

"What are particulates?" Castle asked.

"Dirt, insects, liquids…" Temperance threw her hands up into the air. "How do you expect to solve a murder if you do not have specialists working the scene?" She marched up to Esposito and grabbed a pair of gloves. "Who is in charge of flesh?"

"That would be me." Lanie Parish said, amused by the way Temperance had taken ahold of the investigation. Beckett looked ready to explode, and Castle was watching all as if it were the final play in the Super Bowl.

"I need you to inspect the back of the skull, see if there is any trauma to the neck…" Temperance began to move the head back and forth.

"Ok, that is enough!" Beckett shouted. "Step away from the body!"

Temperance glanced up at her. "I will gladly allow you to examine the remains with me…"

"I said step away.' Beckett snarled, slowly reaching for her gun.

"Whoa whoa whoa!" Castle shouted, stepping between the two of them. "Ok, normally I would enjoy seeing two women attack one another, especially if there was jell-o involved, but I think we got off on the wrong foot." He turned to Beckett. "Temperance works with the FBI…she investigates murders."

Beckett never let her eyes leave Brennan's. "That's just great, Castle, but unfortunately, this is my case, not the FBI's, so I am the one that is calling the shots. And I want her to step away from the body."

"And I want you to step away from my partner."

Beckett tensed as she suddenly noticed the presence behind her. He was large, towering over her, more so than even Castle did. She felt the air stir, and suddenly the man's mouth was near her ear.

"First…put the gun back in the holster." Beckett did as she was asked. "Thank you." The new arrival glanced up. "Jeez, Bones, making nice with the locals so soon?" He teased, his mood light.

Temperance barely cracked a smile before she was serious again. "It wasn't my fault. She has no idea how to handle a murder scene."

"Excuse me?" Beckett snapped.

"Alright, how about we all calm down, ok?" Castle said, trying to act as peacemaker once more. He turned to the newcomer. "Wow…you are a big one, aren't you?"

"Bones, who is Happy McGee?"

Temperance frowned. "I don't know…who is Happy McGee."

"…the man in fornt of me."

"He is a friend of mine. Richard Castle, this is my partner, Special Agent Seeley Booth."

Castle shook Booth's hand. "Now I see where Temperance got the inspiration for Andrew Ryan."

"That's not me." Booth said quickly, Temperance echoing the statement. Castle smirked; this was something they downplayed all the time, he just knew it.

"Ok, sure, and I wasn't the inspiration for Robert Langdon." Castle stated smugly.

"You weren't the inspiration." Beckett said, annoyed. "You only met Dan Brown, once, on a plane." She shook her head. "Why the hell am I talking about this?"

"Richard said that Booth was the inspiration for Andrew Ryan, which he is not, then Richard said…"

Beckett glared at her. "I thought I asked you to step away from my body."

"Your body?" Booth asked.

"Yes. Killed in New York, New York PD called. The only reason you are here is because your partner called you up."

Castle frowned. "But the only reason you are here is because I…" Beckett shot him a look, and Castle held up his hands in mock surrender.

"Please." Booth stated. "The FBI is so taking over this case."

"On what grounds?" Beckett demanded.

Booth blinked. "Uh…Bones…on what grounds?"

Temperance considered this for a moment. "Daniel Keyes is a famous writer…internationally known. He died of mysterious causes, and he died at a writer's convention filled with writers from all over the country."

"All of which are suspects, meaning that the FBI…we are the best ones to handle the job." Booth said.

Beckett gave Booth a dark smile.

"Uh oh, I know that look." Castle quipped.

"Agent Booth, I have a history with the FBI. If there is one thing I have learned, it is that when it comes to solving murders, they tend to bugle things more often than not. More to the point, my entire team is here…all the FBI has is you and some mystery writer."

"Hey!" Castle and Temperance both exclaimed.

Beckett leaned in close. "The case is mine."

Booth leaned in closer. "Don't bet on it."

Castle gave an overly dramatic sigh as he pulled out his phone. "And once again, it looks like it is up to me to settle all of this." He put the phone to his ear, tuning out the arguing pair of Beckett and Booth.

Lanie glanced at Temperance. "Am I ok to begin examining the body, or are you going to bite my head off too?"

"It would be impossible for me to bite your head off, even if I could unhinge my jaw." Temperance said. At Lanie's confused look, Temperance realized that, once again, she had been dealing with a metaphor. "You seem to be qualified, and you are taking more precatious then your peers…so yes, you may begin." She paused, considering something. "May I assign tasks to your men and women that they would be able to handle?"

Lanie smirked. "Boss them around as much as you want."

Temperance nodded, pointing to one investigator. "I need you to begin gathering samples of the concrete." She pointed to another. "Examine the forklift and the pallet. Catalogue everything."

Booth looked smugly at Beckett. "Seems like your men know who is in charge."

Kate narrowed her eyes. "Everyone stop!" All the officers froze midstride. "The only one giving orders is me, understood?"

"No, the only one giving orders are myself and Bones." Booth countered.

"The only orders I want to hear from you, Agent Booth, are lunch orders."

Booth laughed. "You hearing this, Bones? The locals are talking smack."

Temperance opened her mouth to ask what 'smack' was, but decided to just let it go.

"Actually…" Castle said, hanging up his phone. "We are all giving orders."

Beckett slowly turned towards the mystery writer, seeing in only seconds the familiar twinkle in his eye, the light that only appeared when he had managed to circle around everyone. "What did you do, Castle?" She ground out.

"Well, I just had a nice conference call with the Mayor…" Beckett grimaced, "and Director Cullen." Booth's eyes doubled in size. "The three of us chatted…did you know Mrs. Cullen is a fan of my books? I'm sending her a whole signed set. Anyway, we chatted, and we all agreed that it would be in the best interest of the case if the 4 of us took lead."

"The four of us?" Beckett questioned, looking like she had been punched in the gut.

"We felt that it would make the case go by much faster if we pooled our resources."

Booth nodded. "Makes sense." He turned to Castle. "How did you get my boss' number?"

Temperance stood up. "Wiat a minute! Booth, we can't work with these people…only than…" She gestured at Lanie, "…none of them understand how to catch a criminal!"

"Excuse me?" Beckett demanded.

Castle frowned. "Temperance, you wound me! Beckett and I have caught plenty of murderers."

"Plenty is a vague term, Richard. Besides, I doubt you solved any case Booth and I could not have. I can not believe the converse."

"Is that so?" Beckett challenged, not liking the insinuation that she wasn't up to snuff.

Booth sighed. "Alright, we all got off on the wrong foot, ok? But we are stuck with each other now, so we are just going to have to live with it." He turned to Beckett, holding out his hand. "Truce? You don't have to like me, but can we atleast be civil?"

Beckett looked at his hand as if it were a wild animal, before finally shaking it. "Fine." She turned towards Bones. "Temperance…"

"Dr. Brennan." Temperance stated.

"Bones." Booth ground out between grit teeth.

Temperance took a calming breath. "Yes, Det. Beckett?"

"What more will you need for your review of the scene?"

Castle smiled. "See, one big happy family!" Beckett, Booth and Temperance all looked at him as if he were nuts. "Well…a family, anyway. For me this is happy."

Temperance removed her gloves. "Richard and I examined enough when we first discovered the body. I'll know more we send this to the Jeffersonian."

Beckett held up her hand, stopping Temperance as the doctor moved to head out of the loading bay. "Wait…why are we sending it to the Jeffersonian?"

"Here we go." Booth muttered.

"My people are better equipped to handle this case."

"And mine aren't?"

Booth sighed. "No offense, Detective, but the squints…they would eat your guys for breakfast."

"Squints?" Castle asked.

Booth squinted his eyes. "You know, always examining things…"

Castle nodded, amused. "Can I use that in my next book?" He itched to write it down. "Squints…that is classic."

"The point is…" Beckett stated, getting the conversation back on track, "that we have a perfectly good lab here."

Temperance shook her head. "That may be, but that fact remained that our facilities are simply better. Your coronor is very professional, but Dr. Saroyan is clearly her better." She turned to Lanie. "No offense."

"None taken." Lanie said. "Saroyan…her name couldn't be Camille, would it?"

Booth raised an eyebrow. "You know Cam?"

"You could say that." Lanie said with a smirk. "Old friends. I knew she was in DC…"

Castle clapped his hands together. "Here's a thought! Why doesn't Parish go with the body and…everything else Temperance needs? That way we have someone on our team at the Jeffersonian, and Temperance's people get an extra set of hands.

Lanie shruggd. "I wouldn't mind. Love to see Cam again."

Temperance considered the option. "I would not be opposed, as long as Cam was lead."

Booth turned to Beckett. "Well Detective?"

Beckett took several calming breaths. "Fine…we will ship our coronor and our body out of state so some people I've never met can look at it." She turned on her heels. "Now that we have that settled, lets go break the news to the organizers that their rising star is dead."

Castle wrapped an arm around Temperance as they headed out. "Mystery author murdered at a convention filled with people that craft perfect crimes, and two crack teams of killer catchers working together to nab the perp? This is going to be the greatest case ever!"

Booth glared at the back of Castle's head as he trailed after them.


	3. Chapter 3

**Author's Note: This series takes place before the release of "Heat Wave" in Season 2 of Castle and within a few episodes of Bones in season 5**

**Please continue to review!**

(The Jeffersonian)

Angela made her way to the examining platform, swiping her card as she took to the stares to the elevatated section of the lab. A part of her mind wondered, for a moment, why they did there examinations there. They worked on high profile cases and they chose to work in the middle of a well lit open space, which was little more than a lobby. And the security was little more than an alarm system that alerted guards that looked to be there more for show than anything else. Granted, the entire area had a wonderful visual…but she had to question what Brennan never complained about it being illogical.

She had let all these thoughts pass through her head, then fade away as she made her way to where Dr. Jack Hodgins was seated, planted on the examining table, swinging his legs back and forth. Beside him, Wendell Clay stood near by, his entire body a spring waiting to be sprung. She seen Hodgins like this before, but Wendell…Wendell was like Booth, a big kid but able to hide his true emotions. He didn't bounce on his feet like Hodgins did when he was excited…not normally.

Angela couldn't blame them though. Her spotlight dwarfing grin was on full display today.

"So, you heard about our visitor, huh?"

Hodgins nodded. "Yeah…I can't believe it…I'm hoping its not true."

"I am." Angela said. "Wishing to every deity it is true."

Wendell frowned. "Wow…that's really cold."

"Yeah…what the heck is wrong with you?" Hodgins stated, suddenly upset.

"Did I miss something?" Angela asked. "Why are you guys so upset that a friend of Cam is coming?"

Hodgins gave her a look of utter confusion. "Who cares about that? We want to see if Daniel Keyes really bit the bullet."

Angela tilted her head, as if a different angle would solve her confusion. "Wait a minute…back the crazy train up for just a minute…Cam, as in our boss, is having an old friend, someone that has major, major dirt to use against her, come here to work with us…and you care about some dead author?"

Wendell frowned. "He isn't just some dead author. Daniel Keyes was amazing. Have you read any of his work?"

Angela shook her head. "Sorry, but I have found that when a guy writes a book, he tends to write them how he THINKS women would enjoy the book, not what they would actually want."

"And what is that?" Wendell questioned.

Angela considered her answer. "Men who write with women in mind tend to make the love making sweet and full of butterflies and magic. And that's great and nice…but all the women I know…" She took a step forward, causing Wendell to lean away, panic in his eyes, "…they like it hard and wild."

"Down tiger." Hodgins said with a smirk, knowing full well his ex was telling the truth when it came to that. "You should really read Keyes' book then…it ain't a full piece, and the sex is just how you like your men."

"Strong, powerful and long?"

"I was going to say smart and hairy…" Hodgins quipped.

Angela chuckled, before zeroing in on the subject at hand. "How do you two know what his books are like?"

Hodgins made a motion, but Wendell failed to see it. "We read it in our book club."

Her megawatt grin returned as she spun around, watching Hodgins squirm. "A book club?"

"Yeah…a man can't better himself?"

Angela followed after him as he tried to distance himself from her while remaining on the platform. "A book club where you read mystery novels…tell me, who else is a part of this book club, hmmm? Anyone I would know?"

"No…just…people." Hodgins said, trying to backpedal.

"And what are these people's names?" Angela said, amusement coloring her words.

Wendell shrugged. "Kelly, Becky, Renee, Megan…"

Angela looked over at Hodgins, who was practically squirming. "Those are a lot of female people in your bookgroup."

"Yeah, welll…" Hodgins rubbed the back of his head, eyes finally lighting up when he saw the FBI agents enter. "Oh look, it's the body!" He clapped his hands as Lanie entered. "And Cam's friend! Lets all welcome Cam's friend." He bounded down the steps. "Hello, Cam's friend! How are you, Cam's friend? Am I saying Cam's friend too much?"

Lanie leaned back, looking at Hodgins, wondering what the hell was going on.

"Down boy." Cam said, approaching them from her office. She smiled with she saw Lanie, enveloping the other woman in a hug. "Good to see you again."

"Good to see you, Cam." Lanie stated, finally releasing the hug. "Looks like you've really traded up."

Cam chuckled. "If my old office would have had a drain, I would have stayed there."

"Never underestimate the power of good drainage." Lanie stated. She looked over at the assembled group. "So these are the squints Agent Booth was talking about?"

Cam nodded. "Allow me to introduce Angela Montenagro, our resident artist." Angela accepted Lanie's handshake. "Dr. Jack Hodgins, our bug and slime guy." Lanie reluctantly shook his head, still startled by his way to friendly approach moments before. "And our intern of the week, Wendell Clay."

"Intern of the week?"

"We are still looking for a permanent assistant for Dr. Brennan." Cam answered. She placed a hand on Lanie's shoulder, guiding her towards the platform, the body already set up for them to begin work on. "What do we know so far?" She questioned.

Lanie looked down at the bruised and beaten body of their victim. "Name is Daniel Keyes, writer. Det. Beckett and Castle are working on who last saw him, but from my brief examination of the body, I put time of death around 1 am this morning, no later than 3. The victim was killed from what appeared to be his head being driven into the concrete floor, breaking the back of the skull and causing a bleedout. A pallet of books, weighing several hundred pounds was then dropped on him, bruising and breaking bones." She moved over to a table. "He was found holding this" she held up a gold ring, "the Homer's Ring, believed to be the same one he won last year."

Hodgins shook his head. "To think this is how the author of "Western Front" died…crushed under his own work. Almost poetic."

Angela shook her head. "You can stop pretending you liked the book, Jack…none of your girlies are hear to listen."

Wendell shook his head. "You got it all wrong, Angela. Those girls are my study partners, and I invited Dr Hodgins to come because I felt he would fit in…which he did."

"Was there ever any doubt?" Hodgins quipped.

"And second, "The Western Front" is a great book." Wendell moved about the body. "There is some sort of imprint on the chest, right around the clavicle."

Cam nodded. "We'll do a bisection and have Angela see if she can do a reconstruct." Cam began to examine Keyes' fingers. "So, what's the book about?"

Hodgins grinned as he began to explain the plot while also taking particle samples. "Its about these two brothers, West and Thomas O'Reilly. West is a famous comic book writer, and he's very protective of his brother." He paused. "I have some crushed pollen in the nails."

Wendell picked up the tale. "Their parents are still in Ireland, so West is like the parent. Thomas is a police officer who just made detective. The book opens with a colleague of West's murdered, West the prime suspect. Thomas isn't allowed on the case because of the connection, so the two of them work together behind everyone's backs to solve what really happened. Kinda has a Fugitive vibe too it."

"God, Harrison Ford was hot in that movie." Angela stated, fanning herself.

Lanie smirked. "A lot of bruising around the torso…is there any way to determine if he was a struck before the books fell."

"Oh, don't give them that challenge." Cam stated with a smirk. "Hodgins, do the O'Reilly brothers ever prove West's innocence?"

"Oh yeah. Its this big twist upon twist upon twist thing that reveals a massive coverup…as if there were small ones."

"The next book is suppose to be even better." Wendell stated.

Cam nodded. "Too bad it will be the last."

Lanie turned to Angela. "Cam says you are good with computers…" She held up a plastic bag filled with black bits and wiring. "The victim's laptop was found in a bag at his side…any way you can extract the memory, see if he was looking at something that would have gotten him killed?"

Angela nodded, taking the bag. "I've done more with less." She placed one hand on her hip. "So then…what's the story between you two?"

"No story." Cam stated simply. "Just old friends."

"Yeah, right. I know that tone of voice. That isn't 'no story' tone. That is 'drunken lesbian hookup' or 'killed a guy and swore never to tell' tone." She wiggled her eyebrows. "So spill."

"As she said, nothing to talk about." Lanie stated.

"Nothing at all." Cam parroted just a little too quickly. THe two of them glanced at the team. "Alright, lets break and solve a murder." The two scuddled off, leaving Wendell, Angela and Hodgins on the platform.

"Looks like we have a mystery on our hands." Angela stated.

"You mean who killed Daniel Keyes?" Wendell questioned.

Angela smirked. "That too."


	4. Chapter 4

"And you are sure it was Daniel?" Maria Ordonez was a slightly plump Hispanic woman, her dark hair cascading down her shoulders, dressed in a beige pants suit. Head of the North American Writer's Convention, she was the one that helped put the Writcon together, along wih selecting the judges for the handing out of Homer's Ring and deciding who got to sit where.

"The facial markers all suggest that…"

"It was him." Beckett said, interrupting Temperance.

"Is." Castle stated. "Not like he disappeared."

"Might as well have." Temperance stated. "Dead is dead…once we die the person we were ceases to be…"

"Bones…" Booth hissed. "I thought you knew better than too…"

Temperance leaned over to her partner. "Sorry, that woman just brings out the worst in me."

"Think they are talking about you." Castle stated.

Beckett rolled her eyes. "I apologize for my…associates."

"It is quite alright." Derek Prince stated. He sat next to Maria, holding her hand.

Booth pointed at Derek. "What was your relationship to the deceased?"

Derek sighed. "Daniel had no family…he is estranged from his mother and father…they wanted him to work the family business, he wanted to write. He came onto the scene rather green, only knowing about writing from what he had picked up reading fan fiction."

"Fan fiction?" Temperance asked.

Castle shrugged. "Amatur authors take characters created already from a book or a show and write stories about them. Can be anything from simple love stories to completely different situations and genres but using the characters instead of creating their own."

Derek nodded. "Daniel and I met through an agent he had hired. I saw potential in him, so I decided to mentor him."

"He must have been very grateful." Beckett stated. "A famous writer, taking an interest in him?"

"Former famous." Derek said with a weak laugh. "I haven't written anything noteworthy in years."

Maria shook her head. "Poor, poor Daniel. You are sure it was murder?"

Beckett nodded. "We have a team looking over him right now…but we are confident enough to declare it a murder."

Booth leaned forward. "Mr. Prince, do you know anyone that might have wanted to hurt Daniel?"

Derek frowned. "A couple of authors didn't like him, not a fan of new blood…old school guys." He paused, considering something. "He did receive some nasty fan mail. Some hate stuff, but also a lot of creepy, stalker pieces."

"We'll need to see every letter you have." Beckett stated. "Ms. Ordonez, we will need a list of everyone that was here for the convention today."

"Of course." Maria stated.

Castle glanced at her. "Is it true…that Daniel was going to win Homer's Ring."

Maria seemed surprised he knew that information, but finally nodded. "Yes, he had been selected a few hours ago."

"Now…would the runner up receive the ring or…?"

Becket stared at him. "Castle, for God's sake…"

"He brings up a good point. No reason for a living author to not receive the ring." Temperance said.

"Bones…" Booth warned.

"We will decide that at a later date." Maria whispered. "Now…I need to inform the other members of the committee what has transpired."

"Mr. Prince." Booth called out as Derek stood. "Do you know where Daniel was last night?"

Derek frowned. "No…met for lunch, then he went off with Will Corburn to one of the parties being thrown. I tend to get tired out at these things, so I was in my room the rest of the night."

"Thank you." Booth and Beckett both stated, letting the two leave.

Castle looked over at Beckett. "Who do you like?"

"Not getting anything off Ordonez…don't know about Prince." She paused, nodding her head. "I like the fan letters."

"really?" Castle asked.

"What's not to like? Psycho fan becomes to invested in author, bashes him in when they get a refusal…"

Castle shook his head. "No…no…its to played out, to predictable."

Booth nodded. "I agree. I've dealt with enough potential stalker cases to learn that, most times, they are dead ends." He leaned back, putting his hands behind his head. "I'm thinking one of the authors."

"One of us?" Castle asked. "But everyone loved Daniel."

"Did they?" Booth asked. "Or is Daniel just one of those "Eveyrone loved him…except everyone that hated him" guys."

Castle snapped his fingers. "Oh, I can totally see it now. A twisted maze of lies and long buried hate leading to startling revelations!"

Beckett shook her head. "You are both making this way to complicated. I am telling you, fan goes crazy, bludgeons him to death." She turned to Castle. "And since when are you his bestest buddy?" She jabbed a finger at Booth.

"Uh…I'm just trying to solve the case."

Temperance let out a ear piercing whistle.

"I did not want to do that, but it seemed to be the only way to gain your attention." She glared at them. "Now, if you are through fighting, I would like to put off the trial of our murderer until we actually know something about him, her or them." She shook her head. "Cam should have information for us shortly."

Beckett nodded. "Hate to admit it, but you are right, Dr. Brennan. We also need to talk to this Will Corburn, see if he knows anything about Daniel's last night."

Castle frowned. "Are we going to do that right now?"

"Why? You have someplace else to be?" Beckett asked.

"Well, I did have plans…" He glanced at Temperance.

"Oh, of course." Temperance said, reaching for her phone. "Let's reschedule, ok Richard?"

Booth frowned. "Bones, if you have other things you need to do."

She waved him off. "No no, we can reschedule." She and Castle began to type on their phones. "I'll tell my agent to cancel a few of my signings…"

Castle nodded. "Move my Q&A to tomorrow morning at 9."

Temperance's brow scrunched. "Make sure they have a flexible schedule for tomorrow's panel on True Life Crimes so I can show up late…"

Castle frowned. "Want to move our dinner plans to tomorrow?"

Temperance considered this. "Yes, I will have 4 hours available."

Booth frowned. "Why do you need 4 hours to eat?"

Temperance shrugged. "Well, we have to wait for a table, select our food, eat, leave, have sex for 2 hours, and then get dressed…"

Beckett held up a hand. "Hold up." She turned on Castle. "What did she just say?"

Castle gave her a weak smile. "Get dressed?"

"I think she is talking about the sex, Richard." Temperance shrugged. "It is no big deal. The first time Richard and I met we had a lovely dinner then had sexual intercourse in his room. We agreed that it was purely physical and that we would make it a tradition." She turned to him. "We are both attractive, and our mutual experience means that we are both at similar levels of sexual prowless."

Booth stared at Temperance in what she could only assume was horror, though she didn't know why. "Bones…you…you schedule it?"

"Of course. You do the same thing Booth, planning dates, expect you do no come out and state exactly what you are doing." She nodded her head, Beckett still looking disgusted at a bashful Castle. "But do not worry, Richard and I will be done with plenty of time to help solve the case." Grabbing her bag, Temperance headed to the door, pulling out her phone. "Angela, how are the simulations coming long."

Castle shrank down in his chair as Booth glared at him. "He's not my best bud anymore." He whispered to Beckett.

Kate, however, was busy staring holes in the back of Temperance's head.


	5. Chapter 5

Temperance pressed the speaker button on her cellphone as Booth and Beckett got into the elevator. Kate stood in the furthest corner, as far away from Castle as possible. Booth had the opposite reaction, stepping between Temperance and the Derek Storm writer, using his body as a quasi-shield.

"What have you found, Cam?" Temperance asked.

"Doctor Hodgins found some crushed flower petals on Keyes' clothing. He is trying to identify the type."

Lanie took over. "Kate, you should see the simulator they have here…its 3d."

"Wait, like Star Wars?" Castle asked.

Beckett held up a hand. "Castle, not now. Lanie, what have you found?"

"According to the simulations Miss Montenegro ran, which mirror my own findings, Daniel Keyes was dead when the books crushed him. Death appears to have been caused by his head being struck against the ground several times, cracking the back of the skull."

"How much force would be needed to do that?" Booth asked.

"Not much, if raised high enough. Average human adult, after enough strikes, could do it." Temperance stated.

"So we can rule anyone out." Castle muttered.

Cam began to speak once more. "We found several imprints on the flesh…it appears the victim was struck by someone wearing the Homer's Ring."

Beckett frowned. "One of the authors."

"My theory looking better and better?" Booth teased.

"Don't be too sure." Lanie answered. "It appears to be the ring, but we can't be sure until we do molding and compare it to the ring Daniel was holding when he died."

"Cam, have Mr. Brey examine the bones and see if he can determine which wounds came from the pallet falling and which ones from the fight." Temperance stated.

Booth nodded. "Cam, get Sweets on the line too. We're getting the fan mail Keyes got, I want him to fly up and help Det. Beckett's people."

"Whose Sweets?" Castle whispered.

"Our shrink. You'll like him…he's…I believe the word is quirky?" Temperance ventured.

"We have a psychologist." Beckett stated.

"We do?" Castle asked, only to get a glare sent in his direction.

"Listen, most likely Sweets will just toss some stuff into the air and claim it makes sense…but if I don't do this, he will whine and pout."

Beckett smirked. "You don't like working with psychologists?"

"No…do you?" Booth questioned.

Beckett shrugged. "I've found they can lead you down paths you would have never considered, show you motives you never examined."

"But it isn't hard science." Temperance argued.

"Neither is law enforcement or writing books, but you do that too." Castle stated.

Booth shook his head. "I just don't like it when they poke through my head."

Beckett nodded. "I can understand that…I don't like them going after me either. But I'd rather have them on a case all the time then go in blind and nab the wrong person."

"Maybe that is merely a statement of your poor performance." Temperance offered.

"Whoa Temperance!" Castle exclaimed. "I can't have you insult the partner, ok?"

"I was not insulting her, I was merely stating a fact."

Booth shook his head. "We are going around in circles here. Listen, we are bringing Sweets in to assist your men…he is not law enforcement, so he will be only acting as reference to your officers."

Castle and Temperance shared a look. "But we're not law enforcement…are we just reference?"

Booth began to backpedal at Temperance's ill look. "But you are a scientist…and my partner. That is different."

Temperance nodded. "Yes…I can see that."

"What about me?" Castle asked Beckett.

"…you wish you were reference."

Booth snorted, trying to keep himself from laughing, Beckett giving him a slight smirk.

Castle pouted as the door opened, Temperance following after him as they made their way towards Corburn's room. "You know, she wouldn't solve half her cases if it weren't for me." He muttered.

Temperance nodded. "I have found that law enforcement, while needed, lacks the knowledge to truly act. I believe many more crimes would be stopped if more men and women like Booth and Det. Beckett admitted they did not have the skills and knowledge needed and that they needed people like you and me to aid them." She paused. "Though a do offer more than you do."

Castle bumped shoulders with her. "Thanks Temperance." He said sarcastically, but with a smirk.

Booth and Beckett trailed behind the two. "Does Dr. Brennan do that to you?"

"Do what?"

"Believe she is the one with all the know-how when it comes to catching criminals?" She shook her head. "I swear, the way Castle acts, you would think I was a rookie."

"Bones once said she had to point me…like a fire hose."

Beckett rolled her eyes, a grin passing along her face. "They millions of dollars, they are the toasts of the world, but all they want to do is play in the dirt with us, then complain when they get dirty."

Booth nodded. "Bones would have been arrested 20 times now if I wasn't there to keep her from breaking the rules. She thinks she can do whatever she wants to solve a case."

"Oh my God…Castle is just like that!"

"maybe it is all authors…they get so wrapped up in their stories they actually think its real."

Beckett nodded. "And it is up to us to drag them back to Earth."

"That it is." Booth paused. "Listen…I know you and I got off on the wrong foot, but we are going to need to work together."

"To solve the case…or to keep our partners from getting themselves killed?"

"A little of both, Det. Beckett. So what do you say…we play nice with each other?"

Beckett said nothing for a moment. "Call me Kate, Agent Booth." She said, offering an olive branch.

"I'd say you could call me Seeley, but I hate it when people call me that."

Beckett held out her hand. "Booth it is then."

Booth shook her hand. "Come on, Kate…lets catch up to writers before the commit another felony."

^&^&^&^

Lanie sat down on the couch in Cam's office, kicking her feet up on the table. "You've come a long way since college, Cam."

Cam smiled. "I'd say the same for you, Lanie…I miss the dreds on you, though."

"Remember when you dyed your hair purple and red?"

Cam burst into laughter. "Oh my God…what was I thinking?"

"You were thinking was rad?" Lanie shook her head. "But what I meant was look at where we are now…you are working at the Jeffersonian, and hey, I'm a the Medical Examiner for New York…not bad for two _punks_like us."

Cam nodded. "Not bad indeed." She sat on the edge of her desk, setting a file aside. "Listen…I have got to ask you something…Det. Beckett and Richard Castle…are they…"

"Partners? Friends…" Lanie held up her hands, inserting her pointer finger into a hole she made with her other hand. Cam began laughing again, almost falling off the table. "No…we are all wondering when they will, but no."

Cam sighed. "Same here…with Dr. Brennan and Seeley, I mean." She stared off to the side. " Why is it that two people, who fit together so well, can't see that they belong with each other."

Lanie shook her head. "If I knew, I would be figuring a way to get Kate and Castle to finally jump in the sack."

Cam smirked. "Do they have there own private language?"

"I hate it when they look at each other and you know they are thinking the same thing and won't let you in on it." Lanie complained.

"Or how they bicker and you try and join in and they double team you."

"That is the worst."

Cam nodded. "Yup."

The two sighed.

Outside their door, Angela backed away, scurrying over to where Hodgins was working. "I've got more info!"

"About the flower?" Hodgins asked. "Good…because I am running out of tricks."

"Forget the flower, no body cares…I know more about Cam and Dr. Parish."

Hodgins frowned. "I care about the flower…"

"The flower is old news, Jack." Angela stated, waving Wendell over. "Ok, so get this…Lanie and Cam knew each other in college."

"We already knew that." Wendell stated.

"Yes, but there is more." Angela replied. "Lanie use to have dreadlocks…and Cam once dyed her hair purple and red."

Hodgins frowned. "So they had weird hairdos?"

"And they mentioned that they couldn't believe to **punks** like them had gotten this far…punks…" Angela smirked. "They are hiding something…something juicy and big…and I am going to find it." Angela scurried off, leaving Hodgins and Wendell to stare at each other.

"You know…sometimes…she freaks me out."

"You…I use to date her!"


	6. Chapter 6

Author's Note: I would like to thank every single person that is reading this story, putting it on their alert list, their favorite list, and most of all reviewing. I get all the more into a story when I get reviews and see that the story is being enjoyed, and that is why I am able to get these chapters out so quickly, because of each of you. Please continue to review, ask questions (I will answer as best I can) and sending me encouragement. Also, if you know of any other websites where this story could be posted, or any contests (I know many genres such as Buffy, Inuyasha and even "Lois and Clark" have awards) where this could be entered, please let me know. I think all of us want to get the word out about this story...from what I can tell, you guys are feeling what I am feeling...that this story is special.

One final note: Yes, this story does not have a beta. I have found with past stories that allowing a beta to read chapters can result in too long of time delays. I want to get these chapters out as soon as I can, to decrease the wait you guys have...but when I have had stories betaed, I end up with WAY too long of wait time for what I feel is too little a payback. Now, if you notice a glaring error and wish to include it at the end of yoru review, please do so and then I will change it...I have had great sucess with this (though don't make the entire review a beta...my eyes tend to glaze over when I read 5 paragraphs of how I shouldn't us "..." so much :D ).

Finally, the comments made in this chapter are not my opinion (You will understand what these means at the very end). No disrespect was meant to anyone at this site.

^&^&^&^

"Temperance, Richard…" Will Corburn stated, walking over to his wet bar and pouring himself a drink. "Can I offer you anything?"

Temperance frowned. "No, thank you."

"I'd love-" Beckett glared at him. "I mean I'd love something but it would be inappropriate."

Corburn nodded. "But of course." Corburn began to mix up his drink, pouring several different exotic looking liquors into a shaker. "You really should try some…I got this recipe from a 90 year old drink master off the coast of Fuji. Very good…a sweet, fruity taste, but it goes down strong like a shot of Jack…the perfect drink for a many that wants a strong sip but doesn't want to kill his taste buds."

"Mr. Corburn…we aren't here to talk about drinks." Booth stated.

Corburn nodded. "Of course…" he set the drink aside. "Need to let that sit for a moment…the key to the drink is the right fruit juices…they need to be cut just right…"

"As Agent Booth explained, Mr. Corburn, we could really care less about the drink. We want to know about Daniel Keyes."

Corburn sighed. "Poor Daniel…taken too soon, before he even had a chance to live. You know, this one tribe I lived with in Tanzania, a boy like Daniel would have been close to becoming a grandfather…there is something to be said about young mortality in the more savage parts of the world."

Booth rubbed his head. "He's reminding me of that intern of yours, Bones…"

"Mr. Nigel-Murray?"

"Reminds me of a walking Wikipedia." Castle stated. He glanced at Temperance. "Wikipedia is a…"

"That one I do know." Temperance stated. "Will, Daniel was murdered, and any other time I would find your travels among other cultures informational, I find myself growing impatient. And if I am growing impatient, Agent Booth and Det. Beckett are about ready too…"

"Snap you like a twig." Castle finished. "So start talking."

Corburn looked up at the ceiling, sighing. "To live in a place where experience was valued. Very well…what do you wish to know."

"How well did you know Daniel Keyes?" Beckett asked.

"Well enough." Corburn said, cutting up some mangos.

Booth snapped his fingers. "Here's a hint, bub…when the detective with the gun asks you a question…use more than two words."

Corburn looked up at Booth. "I would, but I am afraid you would get confused."

Beckett took out her cuffs. "Ok, lets play it like this…answer the questions, or your next travel book will be about the culture of a New York City holding cell."

Castle locked eyes with the author. "I'd start talking…the boys down in holding tend to get grabby."

"I believe what Richard is saying is that they will sodomize you, the prisoners in holding, because your bone and muscle structure make you appear more feminine than them."

"Alright, alright!" Corburn said in disgust. " No need to threaten a man like that." Corburn moved away from the wet bar. "And what do you mean, feminine?"

Booth threw his head back. "Could I please…just get an answer to the question."

Corburn sat down on his bed, itching the side of his head. "Okay…me and Daniel knew each other, but we weren't pals."

"You guys always seemed chummy to me. You were always talking at the conventions, hanging out…" Castle stated.

"So are you and Temperance." Corburn fired back. "Would you say you were friends?"

"Biblically, from what I've heard." Beckett muttered.

"Huh?" Temperance questioned.

"Then what were you two…if not friends?" Booth asked.

Corburn pressed his thumb and ring finger to his temples. "We were convention companions. These things…they are rather dull. Even with the number of authors moving about, most of them are…they are Iceland…white and plain and boring."

"Greenland." Temperance corrected. "Greenland is icy."

"Everyone knows that." Castle stated.

"So you two were friends only at the conventions?" Beckett asked.

"If you are asking if we chatted outside the conventions…yes, but only to confirm a dinner plan for an upcoming event. Otherwise we were in our own little worlds, islands adrift in a sea of normality, only to meet once and a while." Corburn leaned forward. "At these conventions, you want to have someone as a fallback, someone you can converse with should opportunities for fun not arise. It is no different that you two." He pointed at Temperance and Castle.

Booth snickered. "I think it's a bit different."

"Tell us about last night, Mr. Corburn."

Corburn let out a coarse chuckle. "I told you…Daniel and I knew would could count on each other if other avenues of enjoyment did not arise. Last night, those roads did not open till a bit later."

"English, please." Beckett asked.

"He means that him and Keyes partied for a bit before they parted ways." Castle stated.

Corburn waved a hand at Castle. "And give the man a prize." Corburn tapped the right side of his head with one finger, staring up once more. "The two of us arrived early at the hotel and met up at the bar around 7 pm. We discussed our works, I told him about my newest novel…I set it in Rio, lovely this time of year…and he talked to me about his new mystery. Wonderful idea, though I keep trying to convince him to set it someplace other than Chicago."

"Why?" Temperance asked.

Corburn smirked. "Tell your publisher you need to do research for a book, and they throw money at you. I get to go on vacation any time I want, and all I need to do is say I am writing a book about Hawaii or the French Alps or Madrid."

"With the amount of money I have made from my books I could go to those places without writing about them." Temperance stated.

Booth leaned towards Beckett. "We got in the wrong profession."

Beckett nodded her agreement. "Mr. Corburn, what happened next?"

"Well, Daniel was invited to chat with Miss Paradise Jones. I allowed him to leave…had she invited me over, I would have expected the same form him. I remained at the bar for several hours, occasionally noticing the two of them but paying little heed." Corburn frowned. "But now that I think about it…I did see Daniel get into a rather heated debate with Timothy Black. The two of them left, Paradise on their heels. That was the last I saw of him." Corburn stood up. "Now then, if there is nothing else, your need to interrogate me has caused my drink to become ruined, and I will need to fix a new one."

Beckett closed her notebook. "Don't leave the hotel, Mr. Corburn…we'll be in touch."

Castle paused, picking up Corburn's abandoned drink and giving in a sniff, before taking a swig. "Not bad."

"Savages." Corburn muttered.

^&^&^&^

Cam typed a few commands into the main computer before stepping back, the image of Temperance flaring to life. Behind her, Castle, Booth and Beckett subtly nudged each other to get a good view.

"We have some news for you." She stated, trying not to smile at the four of them crowding around the screen.

"Is it who killed Keyes and why?" Castle asked with a smirk.

"Castle, these guys are geniuses, but they aren't that good." Lanie stated. "Mr. Brey?"

Wendell stepped forward. "I've found that Mr. Keyes had several cracked ribs, as well as a black eye, all of which were not caused by the books falling."

"How can you be sure?" Booth asked. "There were a lot of books."

"The books fell with a lot of weight, but not a lot of speed. They applied a lasting pressure that caused the bones to buckle, like bending a tree branch. The cracks I found and the 3rd and 4th rib on the right side were made by a fast strike that had a good amount of strength over a small area…most likely a fist."

"Could be Timothy Black then." Beckett stated. "Corburn said they were arguing."

"Heated debate." Temperance stated. "Anything else, Mr. Brey?"

Wendell nodded. "I found several indents, especially one well preserved just outside the left eye. Angela and I determined at it was a Homer's Ring that did the damage, matching the one found in Mr. Keyes' hand."

"That will help…how many of the writers here have rings like that?" Booth asked.

"Not many." Castle admitted. "But do we know if it was a knockoff?"

"Knockoff?" Beckett asked.

Castle nodded. "Several fan sites have made knockoffs of the Homer's Ring, to sell to readers who want to look like their favorite writers."

"There are…people who want to look like you guys?" Booth asked, making a face. "Now that is creepy."

Hodgins stepped up towards the screen. "Ok, so I was able to get a match on the flower. It is a Rosa majalis, otherwise known as the Cinnamon rose. Yields hip fruit used to make rose hip syrup."

"And I care about this why?" Booth asked.

"Because the Cinnamon rose blossom is the trademark of the Brothers of Freedom."

Beckett frowned. "What is that…some sort of cult?"

Hodgins shook his head. "Yeah, if Imagination Land. The Brothers of Freedom are a group that investigates secrets the government is hiding in all of Timothy Black's novels."

"Two for Two for Mr. Black." Booth stated.

Angela stepped up. "Hey sweetie…oh, so this is the famous Richard Castle." Angela fluttered her lashes as Castle. "I was such a big fan of Derek Storm…my nights will be so lonely without him warming my dreams."

"Well, all I can offer as payment is Nikki Heat…I don't know if she'll do any good…"

"Oh, she will." Cam stated with a smirk.

"Huh?" Castle replied.

"Angela is bisexual…she has slept with both men and women." Temperance answered.

"…thanks, sweetie." Angela said, with a slight smile. "Anyway, I'm still pulling up stuff on Keyes' laptop, but one thing did strike me. Tell me, do either of you two ever read the stories fans write about your novels."

Temperance shook her head. "I've never seen the appeal of writing about characters that you yourself have not created."

Castle shrugged. "Maybe once or twice, just out of sheer boredom. All I remember is that the writers REALLY liked pairing Derek up…be it with men, women…and in one really strange story himself...who got pregnant…"

Booth shook his head. "Ok, and I thought what some professional writers wrote was strange."

Beckett shrugged. "Its not as bad as it sounds. Sure, there are a lot of writers that enjoy writing out their own bizarre fantasies, but there are some really good writers out there just honing their craft."

Castle raised an eyebrow. "Beckett…don't tell me you are a fan fic lover!"

Beckett giving Castle a half-lidded look. "As I told you before, Castle…the things you don't know about me could fill books."

"Sorry to interrupt all the flirting…" Angela stated, "But I figured that would be your responses. That's why Keyes' internet history is so strange…he has spent almost the last 8 months on , reading different stories…a few from other genres but mostly about the 'West' series." Angela frowned. "I'm trying to dig a bit deeper, find out exactly how long he spent on each story…could be him just looking for people stealing his work…"

"Keep looking, Angela." Temperance stated. "Is there anything else?"

Lanie nodded. "Do you know if Daniel Keyes was drinking the night he died."

"Heavily." Beckett stated. "Find that in the tox screen."

"Yes, but that is not all. We found a heavy amount of Flunitrazepam in his system."

"Huh?" Castle, Booth and Beckett all stated.

"It's a drug found in Rohypnol." Cam stated.

Booth frowned. "Wait…you aren't say…"

"Yes…I'm saying Daniel Keyes was roofied."

"You authors sure do know how to party." Beckett stated.


	7. Chapter 7

"Ok, so I think it would be best if we split the suspects up, save everyone some time." Booth stated.

Beckett nodded. "It would speed things up."

Castle clapped his hands together. "Ok, so me and Beckett will take Paradise Jones and you guys can get Timothy Black."

Temperance, however, shook her head. "No…no we can't do that."

Booth frowned. "Bones, I really don't have a preference…I think it doesn't matter who we interview…"

"I am not talking about that, Booth." Temperance looked at Beckett. "This is an important case…we can't rely upon her to question either one of them correctly." Beckett narrowed her eyes. "I mean, I am sure you are a good detective, but you are use to cases that merely involve criminals from New Yorks. Besides, your partner is just an author…no offense, Richard."

"None taken." Castle said sarcastically.

"Bones, it's a waste of time to have all four of us interview every suspect…it will give the killer time to plan for us."

Temperance shook her head. "One of us needs to be there, Booth, end of story."

Castle clapped his hands. "Then its settled."

"It is?" Beckett asked.

"Of course." Castle stated. "Me and Agent Booth will go talk to Mr. Black, and you two lovely ladies can discuss matters with Miss. Jones."

"I'm…not sure I like this idea." Temperance stated.

"Me either."

"Too bad, I love it." Booth said with a smirk. "See you in 2 hours."

Both women watched as their partners hurried away, before staring at each other, hatred rolling off Beckett in waves.

"…if I were anyone else, I think I would have something humorous to say." Temperance said.

"If you were someone else, I wouldn't be so pissed off." Beckett muttered, spinning around and heading towards the front desk to find Paradise Jones.

^&^&^&^

"Detectives Ryan and Esposito?"

THe two detectives looked up as Dr. Lance Sweets approached them, extending his hand. "Dr. Sweets…how was your flight."

"Can't complain, can't complain." Sweets rocked back on his heels, whistles. "Man…so this is New York. You know, I always wanted to come here…I've been to a lot of places, but never got a chance to come here." He paused, eyes lighting up. "Oh! After we solve this case, can I got to Rays?"

"Which one…Original, Famous, Original Famous…" Ryan began.

Sweet grinned. "Any and all…I am in your hands."

Esposito shook his head in good humor as he led the shrink towards their cab. "You know, you aren't exactly what I was expecting."

"Oh?" Sweets asked.

Ryan nodded. "Most shrinks we know are stuffy and formal…you seem to be a bit more human than your robot brothers."

Sweets raised an eyebrow. "Oh, I can be quiet stuffy and I can admit, I can get technical when I need to be…" He grinned. "But I've found talking like this…acting like this…gets people to open up to me."

Ryan nodded. "That's great…just don't go analyzing us."

Sweets nodded. "Don't worry, even if I didn't have this case…with Dr. Brennan and Agent Booth…well, lets just say my dance card is full."

Esposito clapped Sweets on the back. "Well, if we can find a way to tear you from those letters and the FBI…maybe we can get you to investigate something for us."

"And that is?" Sweets asked.

"Oh…Det. Beckett." Ryan stated.

^&^&^&^

"So, will you be bringing Dr. Brennan by?" Alexis asked.

Castle chuckled as he pressed his cell closer to his ear. "It's a possibility, but you know how these cases get." He paused. "And why are you so antsy to see Temperance? You never want to meet any of my writing friends."

"Maybe because Dr. Brennan, unlike most of your friends, actually has a good head on her shoulders?" Alexis stated. "She's a good influence on you, dad."

"I feel like we have this conversation backwards." The elevator dinged. "Listen, I need to go…see you tonight. Love you."

"Love you too, dad."

Castle shut his phone, Booth giving him a look as they stepped out of the elevator. "Kids."

Booth smiled. "Don't need to tell me…" He fished out a picture from his wallet. "Got a kid myself."

Castle nodded. "He's cute."

"Name's Parker…6 years old, bundle of energy with floppy hair."

"Their great at that age. Everything is an adventure…something new and wonderful for them. You are their hero, the biggest and strongest in the land…and everything can be solved with a kiss on the forehead." Castle smiled weakly, pulling out a picture of Alexis. "Not that I wouldn't trade having her like this…they are so much fun when they are old enough to actually do fun stuff…but…well…"

"You wish you could solve everything with kisses." Booth stated.

"Yeah." Castle said, putting the photo in his pocket. "Alexis…her mom is a bit of a flake…she means well, but she just isn't suited to be a full time mom…I raise her myself, so I deal with things no father should deal with."

Booth nodded. "Wish I had that problem. Parker's mom, she wouldn't marry me…so I am lucky I get to see him as much as I can."

"That…sucks."

"Yeah…yeah it does." Booth knocked on the door, barely giving Timothy Black a moment to realize what was happening before he entered, Castle following. "Mr. Black…we need to talk."

^&^&^&^

Beckett walked towards the woman at the bar, the one Temperance had said was Paradise Jones. Paradise appeared to be in her mid 30s, her incredibly short hair (done in almost a boyish cut) streaked with different colors. She was wearing a red and black vest, no bra in sight, her arms and neck covered in all sorts of tattoos, ranging form tribal markings to cartoon rabbits. The woman was downing her drinks like a pro, calling out to anyone that would listen.

"Miss Jones, my name is…"

"Who cares what your name is…" Paradise said, slightly slurred. "mmmm…easier if I don't know the name…then you aren't offended when I call the wrong one out in bed."

"I am not here to sleep with you." Beckett said. "I am Det. Beckett, and this is…"

"Temperance Brennan…the woman that keeps me out of Richard Castle's bed by being in it." Paradise accused with a laugh.

"I believe the real reason you have not been in Richard's bed has more to do with your foul odor, grating personality and lack of imagination in bed."

Paradise licked her lips. "Ok…anyone else getting turned on right now?"

Beckett snapped her fingers in the woman's face. "IF we could focus?" She took out her notebook. "I'd like to ask you about Daniel Keyes."

Paradise sighed. "Why do you think I am drinking? I'm toasting his life…a sip for each year…or perhaps month…maybe minute…"

Temperance frowned. "She is clearly intoxicated…I doubt she will be able to tell us much."

"I've found drunks to have looser tongues, actually." Beckett stated. "So…would you mind telling us how Keyes got roofied?"

Paradise shrugged. "I did it…is that a problem?"

^&^&^&^

Timothy Black stared at the two men, shaking his head in disgust. "So, it has come to this, huh? The government has finally come to shut me up, to get me to either sell out or cop out or die out! Well, I will do no such thing!" He began to pace. "I will continue to scream from the mountaintops and the rooftops and the hardtops what I know, what I have seen and what you are trying to do!"

Richard glanced at Booth. "This is going well."

Booth rubbed the bridge of his noses. "Don't worry, I speak psycho-conspiracy babble." He muttered. "Something I picked up from working with Hodgins."

"I don't know who that is." Castle stated.

"And now you sound like Bones…great." Booth turned to Black. "Listen, I am not here to do any silencing or anything of that nature."

Timothy laughed. "Oh, is that what your shadowy masters told you?"

"My 'shadowy master' is a balding man that likes watching Gangster films and complaining about their mistakes." Booth quipped. "So how about we cut the manifesto short and answer a few questions, ok?"

Black looked at Castle. "Et tu, Richard?"

"Hey, I'm just here as a consultant…"

"Daniel Keyes. Found dead." Booth said coldly.

"A victim of the government, trying to silence him."

Booth laughed. "See, now I hadn't considered that angle."

"Why would they want him dead?" Castle asked.

"They don't need a reason to want someone dead, though there could be hundreds. They could be pissed Keyes is taking attention away from their handpicked leaders. Or perhaps that his novels deal with the wrongly accused. Perhaps he passed someone on the street he should not have seen…"

Castle leaned forward. "Really?"

Booth groaned. "Daniel Keyes wasn't killed by the government! I don't know who did it, though right now, you are my best candidate?"

"Oh, so now I am being framing…" Timothy began.

Booth held up a hand. "Stop…right there. You are not being framed."

"Kinda sounds like he could be…" Castle began, only to shrink when Booth gave him a dark look, "…but I could be wrong."

Booth leaned closer to Timothy. "Lets look at the facts, shall we? You were the last person anyone saw Daniel Keyes with. You had words with him, threatened to get physical."

"And this morning you were yelling at Corburn." Castle added.

"You look for the little clues that leads to cover-ups…well, I have a lot of big clues…and they all point to you."

Timothy shook his head. "I can explain the fight…you simply don't have all the information."

"Well then…explain away."

Timothy sat down on his bed. "Alright…two years ago I signed a deal to have one of my books, 'Shadows in the Potomac' made into a film. I know, I know, stupid move getting in bed with mass media outlet known as Hollywood, but I felt that being part of the system would also help take it down. We finally got a script all settled upon a few months back, everything looks great. Last week, I get a phone call…the studio just bought the rights to "The Western Front" and want to put all their power behind that film. My director is taken from me, and I get some german guy known only for making movies based on video games."

"…so?" Booth asked.

Castle grimaced. "Its hard to adapt novels, that's why I haven't sold the rights to Derek Storm yet. You get the wrong director, you end up with a direct to dvd crapfest that no one watches, and you are left with a choice: slam the film and kiss your chances to make another one goodbye, or sell out and been seen as a traitor to the fans."

Timothy nodded. "Keyes screwed me over…I was telling him last night that I was going to tell every one of my fans to boycott his movie, because he was working as a pawn of the government who wanted to keep my film from coming out, which would…"

"What part of 'no more manifesto' did you not hear?" Booth said. "Now, that was a really interesting story…just one mistake."

Castle nodded. "That wasn't an alibi…it sounded more like a confession."

Timothy let out a long breath. "It was merely an explaination of the fight…my alibi is…something different."

"Oh?" Booth asked. "Do tell."

"Senator Blackhorn."

Castle frowned. "Whose she…another conspiracy creator?"

"She's my alibi." Timothy stated.

"She saw you?" Booth asked.

Timothy smiled weakly. "All of me."

"…oh geez!" Booth groaned.

"Wait a minute…you are a conspiracy writer, and you are sleeping with a Senator?!?" Castle exclaimed. "Now…now that is just wrong."

"Yes…very wrong." He gave them a lecherous grin.

Booth looked to the heavens.

^&^&^&^

"She admitted to giving Keyes the roofies…" Temperance stated. "I apologize, you are actually quite good at interrogating."

Beckett shook her head. "Not that simple, Dr. Brennan." She looked at Paradise. "Now, why did you roofie Daniel Keyes?"

"Because he asked me too." Paradise stated, licking her lips. "I've done it with many men…in many different ways. And some of them, they like feeling helpless, gets their rocks off."

"That makes sense." Temperance stated. "In societies, the taboo is often seen as arousing due to it being restricted, the body becoming flooded with adrenaline as one fears being caught."

"Thank you Bill Nye, the Science Guy."

"Now he is someone I know." Temperance stated. "Very funny man…he has this joke about the diameter of the pelvic bone…"

Beckett turned to Paradise, ignoring Temperance. "Can I run a situation by you?"

"Does it involve whip cream?"

"No. It involved you drugging Daniel Keyes, not because he wanted to sleep with you, but because it was the only way for you to have him. I've done my research on you, Miss Jones…your latest book has stalled out, and your work at becoming a screen writer is in the toilet after that demon-chick-horror film of yours tanked. The only thing you had left was appearing in the tabloids, and sleeping your way there is probably the easiest. You drug Daniel after he rejected your offer, and while you were in the middle of raping him, he comes to and attacks. You beat him down, then crush him to death in hopes you can both get away with the murder and be linked to it, making your name something everyone is talking about."

Temperance frowned. "Why do all police officers enjoy telling stories like that instead of getting the facts?"

"Why indeed?" Paradise stated. "But you see, that would be quite impossible, that story being real."

"And why is that?" Beckett asked.

"Because after Timothy Black dragged Daniel away, I left the hotel."

"And went where?" Beckett pressed.

"I went three blocks…to the synagogue. I had a private discussion with Rabbi Tuckerman until 5 in the morning, at which point I went to bed."

"You expect us to believe that?" Beckett asked.

"Ask the Rabbi…though, he will know me by Meredith Steinberg." And the women's twin looks of confusion, Paradise shrugged. "I have an image to maintain in the writing world…no one wants to screw a Meredith."

^&^&^&^

"Well?" Booth asked.

"Miss Jones is clean. Rabbi Tuckerman confirmed they discussed the Book of Exodus for 6 hours, well past the time of murder." Beckett stated.

"Dead end with Black."

"He was boinking a senator." Castle stated.

Beckett shook her head. "The whore is a churchgoer and the conspiracy nut is dating government elite…are any of you authors who you claim to be."

"If you mean am I a world renowned anthropologist, then yes, I am." Temperance stated.

"And if you mean am I a charming man that can please any woman…"

"Then that would be another lie, Castle." Beckett commented, answering her ringing cell phone.

"So we are back to square one." Booth said.

"Not quite." Beckett answered. "That was Esposito…they and your Dr. Sweets just hooked a big one in the fan mail."

Castle whistled. "Should have known…in mysterious like this, it's the fangirl that did it."

"I thought it was always the butler." Temperance commented, chasing after the 3 of them.

^&^&^&^

Author's Notes; First, thank you all who are reviewing. Please continue.

Also, some are wondering what I will do after this story is done. I will say that I do have vague ideas for a sequel, but I won't discuss them till later. However, before that I do have a story that will be done first, which I will give you a small taste of right now:

"Temperance Brennan never understood Christmas. She had long given up its magic, and saw those that clung to it as foolsih. But this Christmas, Mr. Chaos brings you a tale...a tale of how Bones learned the true meaning of the season...

...with the help of 3 **ghosts**

**The Scroage in the Labcoat**

**By Mr. Chaos**

**Coming soon"**

Finally, I do have other ideas for stories that I would actually like to see other people write...maybe if I list them here, someone reading will be inspired

The first two are:

1) What if things had gone differently? What if Temperance, driven to discover what had happened to her parents, had saw not science, but the law as the key? What if a kind science teacher, seeing the abuse Seeley Booth suffered, had taken him under his wing. Imagine this world, where ulta-litteral and factual Agent Temperance Brennan was teamed up with the charming, down to earth Dr. Seeley Booth, forensic anthropologist for the Jeffersonian. What would happen?

2) In another Alternate Universe, what if Rebecca had said yes, and married Booth. But, life is not always happy, and Booth finds himself a widower, raising a 4 year old son. How would things be different if Temperance Brennan was partnered with a mourning Agent Booth, struggling with being a now single father?


	8. Chapter 8

Booth looked through the one way mirror, taking in the thin slip of a girl seated at the table in the interrogation room. "She's the stalker? She looks like she couldn't even stalk a lettuce stick."

Temperance frowned. "Why would someone…oh, a metaphor."

Beckett rolled her eyes. "Give the Doctor a treat, she got one." Temperance stared at her. "Again, a metaphor."

"Ah."

Castle turned to Ryan and Esposito. "So, what is her story?"

Ryan looked at the notes he had gathered. "Her name is Gabrielle Pickings, but she goes by the screen name "GabbySouth". Lives in New Jersey, she is 27 years old and works as an accountant at a small paper supply company. A series of boyfriends, but nothing real interesting, she for he most part appears to be quite normal."

"If she is normal, then why is she here?" Castle asked.

Esposito laughed. "He said 'appears'. Her real world life is straight forward…but her Internet life…" He began to sort through some documents. "As GabbySouth, she has written 15 "The Western Front" fan fics, ranging from 1000 word single chapters to a couple almost 100,000 long novels."

"Actually, the correct term there would be novella." Temperance commented.

"So she likes writing fan fics?" Booth asked, not seeing the point.

"Her stories have two different themes. First, that West and Thomas are lovers."

Castle frowned. "Aren't West and Thomas…brothers?"

Esposito nodded. "Yup…second, that the brothers aren't lovers…"

"Thank God…" Beckett muttered.

"But that Thomas should be admitting his love for his partner and they should be having babies right now."

Temperance shook her head. "That doesn't make any literary sense!" She waved her hands about in annoyance. "Just because two characters have obvious chemistry between them, that doesn't mean that would hook up almost within seconds."

Castle nodded. "You want to draw it out, make the audience squirm every time it looks like they are going to get together, then pull back. Makes them want to read more, to see the sexual tension finally break."

"Sounds like you could only pull that off so many times before the audience would become enraged at the fact that the romance was going no where and feel the creators were playing them in order to milk a one note plot out for attention." Beckett stated.

Ryan and Esposito looked at each other, while Sweets, who have been standing off to the side, observing, coughed. Temperance and Booth glanced at each other, as did Beckett and Castle. The room grew quiet…almost startlingly so.

"…anyway…" Booth said, finally breaking the tension, "none of this sounds like motive for murder."

Ryan shook his head. "Merely evidence. The real motive is here, in the letters Miss Pickings sent to Mr. Keyes." He selected one and began to read it. "From 3 months ago…'Mr. Keyes, the mere fact that you have not allowed Thomas O'Reilly to find happiness either in the arms of his partner Tina Jenkins or with his brother West is a slap in the face of all your fans…do you ever wonder if one of us will decide to return the favor?' And there there is this one, from 3 weeks ago…'you have not responded…I wonder if a PERSONAL meeting is needed for me to BEAT some sense into you.' Shall I go on?"

Beckett held up his hand. "I think we got it." She pointed at Ryan and Esposito. "Keep going through the fan mail case we missed something." She turned towards the door, only to whip around and put a hand on Castle's chest. "Where do you think you are going?"

"Uh…in there…to help?"

"No no no…you and the Doc get to stay with Dr. Sweets…Agent Booth and I will be enough."

"But I'm always in there with Booth!" Temperance complained.

"Correction, you are always in your interrogation room. This one is mine…making me queen of it and you a lowly peasant." Beckett nodded to Booth. "Coming?"

Booth gave Temperance a weak smile before following after Beckett.

"You know, I find it very interesting that you and Beckett are fighting like this. It is common…"

"Not now, Sweets." Temperance said, watching through the mirror.

^&^&^&^

"Miss Pickings…" Beckett said, entering the room. "Or should I call you GabbySouth?"

"GabbySouth is merely a pen name." Gabrielle said calmly, folding her hands before her. She glanced at Booth. "I am not a crazy person."

"Well, always nice to hear that." Booth quipped, sitting down. "Do you know why you are here?"

"Its about Daniel Keyes being murdered." Gabrielle stated. "Its all over Facebook…I started the "In Memory of Daniel" page myself."

Beckett nodded. "Right…"

"I am assuming you brought me here because I am Daniel's Number 1 Fan, and thus the best person to offer insight into him."

Booth frowned. "Normally we would ask family and friends…"

The young woman laughed. "Like they would know him like I know him! I've read all his interviews, seen every television appearance…I've painted Ken dolls to look like West and Thomas! I know that Daniel hated egg salad sandwiches, and that his favorite movie was Flubber, which is why Flubber is now my favorite movie. It use to be Serenity, but now I love Flubber!"

^&^&^&^

"What's wrong with Serenity?" Castle questioned.

"I don't know what that is." Temperance commented.

Sweets leaned towards them, whispering, "I did a thesis in college about the dichotomy of Joss Whedon…of how he creates strong females, but then finds the need to damage them emotionally and mentally. They can be strong and powerful, but they are always left alone, their family and friends dying or betraying them, left strong, powerful, but in the end broken women. I supported that it was due to Whedon himself feeling powerless in love, so he created strong female characters he could then abuse in order to make himself feel powerful…"

"What does this have to do with the case?" Temperance asked.

"Nothing…just…making conversation…"

^&^&^&^

Beckett leaned forward. "Miss Pickings, we found several very…disturbing letters you sent to Mr. Keyes…letters that came off as very threatening…"

"As well they should have!" The fan fic writer proclaimed. "I needed to threaten him, to make him see how my ideas were perfect for his novels…"

"Having two brothers sleep together…that makes a novel better?" Booth questioned. "Where I am from, that makes you get sent to jail."

Gabrielle laughed. "No no no…they wouldn't actually sleep with each other. West O'Reilly is in love with his brother, but he knows, because of society, that it is a love he can not express. That would create angst, brooding, and powerful scenes of star crossed love and tragedy."

Beckett pulled out a cheat sheet Ryan and Esposito had done up on the characters in Keyes' novel. "According to this, West O'Reilly is more like a father figure to his little brother…and he's also a raging playboy."

"Lies. Lies written by someone that can't see the truth behind the lines. Daniel saw it, but was afraid to admit it…I told him that giving into the threats of the conservative writing community would only serve to alienate his true fans."

^&^&^&^

"What kind of person would find the idea of two brothers being lovers entertaining?" Castle questioned.

Sweets shrugged. "There is no true answer to that…some researchers believe that the taboo nature of slash and incest in fan fiction allows the writers, being for the most part mild mannered females, to express their darkest sexual fantasies."

Temperance frowned. "Anthropologically speaking, incest would only serve to weaken the genetics of future offspring, and homosexuality would deprive females of strong mates to protect them while they produced said offspring."

"Plus its…you know…icky?" Castle stated.

Sweets sighed. "Its just a theory. Others say that women enjoy slash fics because it allows them to read about sex, something taught to them to be wrong and dirty, without a female that would represent them being involved."

"…that makes more sense…but just barely." Temperance stated.

^&^&^&^

"So…you believe that you and Daniel were…connected?" Beckett asked.

"You make it sound so sinister." Gabrielle complained. "Daniel and I merely tapped into the same font of wisdom, drawing inspiration from similar dreams and visions. But while I was willing top express what I truly saw, Daniel was bullied into watering down his stories, forced to make them more "commercial". You want to find who killed him, look to the critics and the agents and the publishers that forced him to change what he wanted to write."

Booth shook his head. "Listen, if you liked him so much, why threaten him?"

"He responded to their threats, I figured mine would push him in the right direction." She sighed. "I just know, if I would have pressed harder, he would have seen things as I see them…he would have made my stories into novels, and the two of us would have created the stories were destined to write." She grinned. "I even have this idea for a character…"

Beckett cut her off. "And what if Daniel didn't share your vision…what if you were wrong about you two seeing things the same way? What then?"

Gabrielle frowned, staring at the table. "I…I'm not sure. That's a stupid question, really…Daniel and I…I know we are connected, I know we would just take pressuring, convincing…but he would see…"

^&^&^&^

"What do you think?" Temperance asked Sweets. She didn't put stock in psychology, but Sweets did have a strange way of getting things right.

"She's obviously delusional and obsessed. She's allowed the fantasy of not only the story, but being able to control the story, warp her world view. Even her pen name, GabbySouth, is a play on the directional theme of Daniel Keyes books." He rubbed his chin, which Temperance thought he only was doing because he believed (incorrectly) that it made him appear more intelligent. "What's interesting is that, from her body language, she did not start off with such views."

"About her and Daniel being linked?" Temperance asked.

Sweets shook his head. "That, but I'm referring to her views of the book. I've read through some of her older stories, and they are much more radical in approach than her later works. She has been evolving her tastes, changing them to fit what she believes Daniel's view of the stories are. Granted, the major strokes remain the same in her book…the angst, West loving Thomas…but the minor strokes are changing. It is rather disturbing."

Castle gave Sweets a look of admiration. "That…that is just amazing." He laughed slightly. "Listen…I have been thinking that I needed to give Nikki Heat a bigger cast of characters to play off of…I'm thinking a psychologist like yourself would fit in quite well."

Sweets face lit up. "You really think so? I mean…wow…that would be so killer, man." He ran his fingers through his hair. "I know Dr. Brennan included me in her book, but she made me out as a hinderance to Kathy Reichs and Andy, a young boy that is star struck and clings to what she views as a false science to compensate for his own problems…" He gave Castle a look of appreciation. "But you really think you would base a character on me?"

Castle nodded. "Oh yeah…you are such a character in your own right…like Doogie Howser but for the mind. Someone Nikki could turn to in her times of need, someone that could provide exposition…"

Temperance held up her hand. "First off, I did not write about you in my book. None of my characters are based on anyone."

"Yeah, right." Sweets muttered.

Castle nodded. "Temperance, you even based a character on me…Kathy's pen pal Nicholas Towers?"

"…second off," Temperance continued, ignoring them, "I was more interested in knowing your take on Gabrielle and if she could have killed Daniel."

"Oh…no, no she would not." Sweets said. "Now, Mr. Castle, about this new character…"

"Call me Richard…"

"Guys!" Temperance exclaimed. "Why would you not believe her capable of murder? She is obsessive, she threatened Daniel Keyes…"

"Are you jumping to conclusions, Dr. Brennan? We have nothing to tie her to the murder."

"No…no, of course I am not. I merely am stating that the facts, what few we have, point to her." She paused. "Also, I am using previous findings to help form framework for my views."

"Oh?" Richard asked.

Temperance nodded. "Pam Nunam…"

"Who?" Sweets asked.

"You know, the obsessed woman…Morbidly Obese Pam?"

Sweets puzzled this over before it became clear. "Fat Pam…the woman that shot Booth…the woman you killed."

"Wait, when did you kill someone?" Castle exclaimed.

"It's no big deal, she's only the second person I've killed."

"Second?!?!"

Sweets began speaking before Castle to launch into demands for explanations. "Pam was different. Pam, in my opinion, knew in her heart that the figures of her obsession did not love her, and used manipulation to try and change their feelings. She was truly not in love with them either…she merely used the idea that there was a connection to help her ignore problems she herself over-exagerated. Miss Parkings, however, actually is in love with Daniel. She believes them to be destined to be together, and is changing her world to fit into his. To kill him would be like cutting her hand off. She is more likely to attack someone close to Daniel than him."

"Pam tried to shoot me…Booth took the bullet."

Sweets nodded. "But she also tried to shoot you again. Had it been Gabrielle, I believe she would have dropped the gun and gone to Daniel's aid, unlike Pam who, seeing her obsession injured, returned to her vendetta to harm you."

Castle frowned. "Sounds like Pam was more interested in hurting you than getting Booth." When the two looked at him, he shrugged. "If I were writing it, I would have had Pam be obsessed with destroying you, Temperance, the image of what she could never be: an attractive, successful woman with good friends, a steady income and, in her view, the love of a powerful, attractive man."

Temperance frowned. "Who would think Booth and I were together?"

Sweets snapped his fingers. "Richard…that's exactly it! Pam was pretending to be obsessed with Booth in order to slowly destroy you, Temperance…God, its Just like Single White Female!"

Castle clapped his hands together. "Exactly!"

Temperance shook her head. "I have no idea how we got from Gabrielle killing Daniel to Pam Nunam and her being a Single White Female."

"No, Temperance, Single White Female…"

Beckett and Booth entered the room, causing the three to grow quiet. "Well, looks like we caught a break."

"What do you mean?" Temperance asked.

"Weren't you listening?" Booth asked.

"Somehow we got into a discussion about Pam Nunam."

"Who?" Booth asked.

"Fat Pam." Sweets provided.

"I don't know who that is." Beckett said, before her eyes went wide, realizing she had sounded like Temperance. Castle began to laugh.

Booth shook his head. "The point is, I think we got her."

"Did you get a confession?" Sweets said, surprised.

"Almost as good." Beckett answered, holding up a plastic bag. Inside was a gold ring. "Gabrielle was wearing this…"

Castle leaned closer. "Is that…"

"A copy of the Homer's Ring…Gabrielle said she wore it because Daniel had one…we are going to test it now…but if this ring comes back as a match for the ring that struck Daniel Keyes…we got the bitch."

^&^&^&^

Lanie and Cam laughed as they walked past the platform. Lanie was telling Cam all about Castle's first case with the NYPD, and how he had driven Beckett batty. They had their coats in their hands, and were just about to head towards the door, when they heard…it.

A fast, roaring guitar filled the nearly empty lab, the familiar riff causing the two of them to freeze.

"You ask me why I'm such a bitch, when I see you old man?" Lanie's own voice sang around the two.

Lanie and Cam's eyes widened as they rushed towards the source.

"You complain and whine that I hate him, that I ain't his biggest fan"

The two of them broke into a run.

"Well you're right, you saw it all, I wish he would die!"

Cam ripped open the door, staring at horror at the sight before here.

"You want to know, you really do, well I will tell you why!"

There, playing on the Angelator, was Cam and Lanie, along with several over young women. Lanie's hair was dyed bright red, done up in spikes created with way too much hair gel, dressed in ripped biker leather, including a heavy, metal studded biker jacket. She was throttling the mike while Cam, her hair done up in a faux-hawk and wearing what was best described as baggy black pants that were ripped to reveal her leather panties and a vest done up with safety pins, practically humped the bass she was playing.

"(Censored) your dad, he (censored) my mom!" The recorded versions of them sang.

Cam and Lanie could only stare as Angela swiveled around in her chair, a stuffed wite Webkinz cat in her lap, which she stroked gently.

"Well, if it isn't the leader singer and bassist for 80s punk band Phallic Friction…" She motioned to two chairs. "We have much to discuss."

^&^&^&^

Author's Notes: 'Phallic Friction' and the fact Cam was the bassist came not from me but the story "War in the Woods" by bloodwrites, who allowed me to use it in this story. Lanie being the lead singer, the looks of the two, and the lyrics are all my creation. The lyrics I based on songs by The Ramones and other 80s punk bands, while the outfits were stuff I found on Google images.

Gabrielle Pickings is not based on anyone, and the views by the characters on her type of writing do not fully reflect my own. I will admit I have never been a fan of angst, and I agree with Castle that two guys, especially brothers, should not be hooked up. I do not get slash fiction at all, unless the characters are already gay…and even then, I do not go reading it. If you are into that, then I apologize if I offended you. Her character is more a comment on obsessed fans than fan fiction writers…I will only say (without ruining things) that within the next couple chapters, we will get at least 2 character defend fan fiction writing as a positive medium (of course I think it is positive, I am a fan fic writer!)

I do somewhat agree with the characters that too many writers pair Booth/Bones and Beckett/Castle too quickly…however, if do in an interesting way, I am all for it. My favorite story of Bones and Booth is The Surprise in the Mail by Connor846, which, to not give too much away, has Bones and Booth getting together and getting a family in roughly the span of 2 days. Still, the telling of it is so interesting that I let the quickness slide.

The view of Pam Nunam was something I came up with a mere 20 minutes ago while writing this, after reading someone's comment on a message board that she tried to shoot Bones again while Booth lay dying. Considering her comments to Brennan, I decided that I prefer that view of her…more interesting, and I believe the beginnings of a fan fic one shot someone else can write, where Sweets tells Temperance his view of why Pam did what she did and made Temperance realize that if the nutbag can see Booth loves here, Temperance needs to get her head out of her arse.

The view of Joss Whedon I own up to 100%. He is a man that likes powerful chicks that are broken spiritually and emotionally. Name me a single character he's created (Buffy, that girl from Firefly {River I believe}, Echo) that isn't a kick butt female lead that, through some twists, is damaged mentally to the point they should be in a pysch hospital (and with River, she was!).

Finally, I have another story idea I hope someone else (NOT ME…PLEASE, SOMEONE TAKE THE 'Temperance is a cop, Booth a scientist' and 'Booth is a widower' IDEAS AND WRITE A FIC ABOUT THEM SO I CAN READ THEM! I WILL DO THEM IF I NEED TO, BUT I REALLY JUST WANT TO READ THEM MYSELF!) will write.

Basically, I would like to read a fic (if it has already been written, give me a link) where, while solving a case, we intercut from Booth, Bones and the team to Temperance's newest novel, where Kathy and Andy are solving a similar case. I want to see how Temperance views those around her through her "not written about you" characters.

Ok, enough author notes. Remember to review…a lot. Makes me write more, faster.


	9. Chapter 9

"Now, we just let this sit for just a minute and…and this is the secret that makes the rice taste so much better…we let it cook again for three more minutes after it cools."

Beckett watched as Castle moved about his kitchen, checking on the wild mushroom rice before moving the ensure the thin sliced ham he had baking was remaving tender and juicy. Temperance was on a stool nearby, while Booth sat on the couch, listening to Martha discuss her many adventures on Broadway. Alexis was curled up in a chair, Daniel Keyes' "East Meets West" novel held firmly.

"You enjoy this, don't you?" Beckett asked. "Showing off your cooking skills."

"I merely aim to please."

Temperance chimed in. "Studies have shown that more men are learning to cook now due to it being a form of aphrodisiac." At the twin looks of confusion, she continued. "Because men are traditionally seen as hunters, the idea of them doing something that is mostly associated as a female's role is arousing to the opposite sex…it is a statement of equality and respect."

"So cooking makes it easier for you to bed someone?" Beckett asked.

"…I suppose you could word it as such."

Beckett raised an eyebrow. "Well, Castle, another piece falls into place."

Martha, however, just laughed. "I'm afraid in this case you have it all wrong, Temperance." She pointed at a photo. "See here, Seeley, that is my Richard, 9 years old and already cooking. Wasn't some girl he was trying to impress then."

"I had to learn to cook, mother. I would have starved to death waiting for you to crack an egg." Castle hurried over to his rice, turning back on the burner.

"You know, Becks, some people cook just because they like it." Booth stated.

"Becks?" Temperance muttered, not sure why she found it so annoying that Booth had given the detective a nickname.

"I mean, I love to cook…not gourmet things or anything like that, but give me a good barbeque…"

Castle perked up. "Have you seen those new quad burner grills?"

Booth nodded, face lighting up. "Able to cook enough steaks to feed an entire family reunion in one sitting. Now there is a man's grill!"

Martha shook her head. "Boys and their grills….just big metal penises, if you ask me."

Beckett burst into laughter at Castle and Booth's shared look of disgust, while Temperance began rambling on about phallic avatars in society.

Alexis flipped the next page, no one noticing the slowly growing frustration that was consuming her.

^&^&^&^

Lanie and Cam sat heavily in the chairs, staring at Angela. The video of them continued to play mutely in the background, and the two were trying their hardest not to glance at it. Angela was grinning like the chesire cat, enjoying all to much her ability to play a Bond villain.

"How did you find out?" Cam finally asked.

Angela laughed softly. "I feel stupid not thinking about it. Going about, trying to dig things up, using my facial recognition system to try and find old photos of you…" She swiveled, typing a few commands into her computer. "When I could have simply done this."

Cam and Lanie couldn't believe it. There, on Angela's screen…was the Phallic Fricton Wikipedia Page, their faces plastered right there on the main photo, as well as a list of the band members.

"We have a Wiki page." Cam said dumbly.

"Yeah…color me surprised." Angela stated. "So…Phallic Friction, huh?"

Lanie sighed. "It was…just a think, ok? A way to make money for college."

"Just a thing?" Angela pointed to a photo of the band playing a concert in Australlia. "I think this makes it much more than "just a thing". I think that makes it a big hairy deal."

"You are enjoying this way too much." Cam stated.

"Are you kidding? I am loving this. Finally…finally…someone else from the Planet of Boring Scientists is letting their freak flag fly."

"Was, Angela…not is." Cam reminded her.

"We haven't played in years…the band is retired." Lanie added.

"Oh, once you fly that flag, you can't take it down. Once a freak…always a freak." Angela stated. "So…are the rumors about you guys and The Ramones true?"

Cam and Lanie groaned.

^&^&^&^

"This is very good, Richard." Temperance stated.

Castle waved a hand over he dinner table. "I aim to please."

"You know, Bones, you combined this ham with that mac and cheese you make…" Booth began.

"I will admit, you outdid yourself." Beckett commented.

Alexis took a bite, still reading the book.

"So, have you two had sex yet?" Martha asked.

Everyone sputtered.

"W-what?" Booth stammered.

Martha took a sip of wine. "I merely wanted to know if the two of you had, how are the kids putting it…bumping uglies?"

"Mother…" Castle warned.

"Which two of us?" Temperance asked. "There are, after all, several of us at the table."

"Well, we can obviously eliminate myself, as I asked the queston, and Alexis as she has had her nose buried in that book and a woman properly satisfied as no need for books."

"…Alexis, never stop reading." Castle quipped.

"Which is why I know Det. Beckett is not sleeping with anyone, as she has been reading your novel for quite some time." Martha stated. "And I know Seeley and Temperance are not sleeping together."

"And how do you know that?" Booth asked. "…not that I'm saying I want to sleep with Bones."

"Of course you aren't, dear." Martha said, patting him on the arm. "I know because Temperance told me last year that you two didn't sleep with each other, which I stated was just plain foolish." She turned to her son. "I was merely wondering if you and Temperance had commenced with your annual sexual encounter, or if we would need to leave the apartment."

"Richard and I will be engaging in intercourse tomorrow, after lunch." Temperance said, the rest of the adults staring at her.

"Ah, of course." Martha said with a slight smile, noticing the jealous looks Beckett and Booth both wore.

^&^&^&^

"So…are you going to belt out a few tunes?" Angela finally asked.

"No." Cam stated.

"Aw…come on…"

"No." Lanie repeated.

"Nothing from your 'Chicks with Dicks' album?" Angela questioned.

"Whoa!" Hodgins exclaimed as he entered the room. "I just walked into the wrong conversation…I…I will come back later."

Lanie leapt up, grabbing Hodgin's arm. "No…please…whatever it is you had to tell us…"

"Tell us." Cam said. "In great detail."

"With as many big words are you can use." Lanie added, much to Angela's annoyance.

Hodgins glanced at the three women nervously. "oooookay…Wendell and I just examined the ring Booth sent us from Gabby South…not a match."

Cam frowned. "You are sure?"

"Positive. This ring is gold plated aluminum, and it has several defects on the face that did not show up in the imprints on the body."

"So Gabrielle didn't do it."

"I'm afraid so." Hodgins stated.

"I'll tell Booth." Cam stated.

"I'll help!" Lanie shouted, hurrying after Cam.

Angela glared at Hodgins.

"What?"

^&^&^&^

Booth snapped his phone with disgust. The group had moved into the living room, beers cracked open while Temperance and Martha shared a bottle of wine. "Hodgins just confirmed that it was NOT Gabrielle's ring that struck Daniel."

Castle frowned. "Isn't it possible he was struck by someone else?"

Beckett shook her head. "Lanie confirmed the blows occurred maybe minutes before death."

"Which leaves us at square one." Booth muttered.

Martha shook her head. "I don't know why you sound so depressed. From what I've gathered, you four are the best detectives this world has…this is only a minor stumble for you."

"I don't know if that is accurate, I know Booth and I are very skilled, but I would hardly…" Temperance trailed off. "Oh…metaphor."

"Yeah Bones, yeah." Booth said, nursing his beer.

"God…I really don't want to see the newspaper tomorrow." Beckett stated. When the others looked at her, she sighed. "Come on…think about it…"FBI, Jeffersonian, and NYPD clueless, killer still at large"."

Temperance let out, to their surprise, a grunt of disgust.

"I will echo that statement, Bones." Booth stated.

"And don't forget that Daniel was famous…that will make it worse." All four of them turned to glare at Martha. "I am merely saying." She said, throwing her hands up. "Daniel Keyes was a well known writer…people will say how he's talent lost…a star burnt out to soon…a-"

"Lying rat fink (CENSORED)!"

Booth, Beckett, Temperance and Castle all whipped around, staring at Alexis in shook. She was hunched over her computer, muttering to herself in disgust. After several moments, she realized she was being watched, and turned to look back at them

"What?"

"Nothing…that's just the first time I've heard you swear…" Castle wiped away a fake tear. "My baby is growing up."

"I was saving it, for a situation like this." Alexis stated, clearly agitated. "Dad…Daniel was a fake."

"excuse me?" Beckett questioned.

Alexis stood up, rapidly explaining. "All this time, as I was reading this book, I kept feeling like there was something wrong. It seemed played out, like I'd read it before."

Temperance frowned. "That isn't uncommon…writers must always be careful to avoid their work becoming homogenized."

"But it is uncommon when I can begin quoting the characters before I even turn the page." She handed the book to her father, flipping to a random page towards the end. "Read the first line of dialogue."

Castle stared at her but did as she asked. "West looked over at his brother, utterly annoyed. "You are embarrassing me, you know that right? These people here are m friends, my fellow comic book writers". Thomas merely shook his head-"

"-and told his brother, "I'm sorry, I'll just stop my murder investigation so you won't lose your poker buddies," his tone dripped with such sarcasam it might as well have stained the floor." Alexis quoted.

Castle raised an eyebrow. "Word for word."

"You are sure you've never read this before?" Booth asked.

Alexis shook her head. "I have…but not in that book." She motioned for the adults to gather around her computer. Once they were close, she opened a browser window. On the screen, a age of text appeared.

"." Beckett read. "Just East of West?"

"It's the title of a fan fic based in the "Western Front" universe." Alexis told them. "It was finished about a year ago…got some really good reviews." She pointed to the 200+ review count. "It's about West and his brother Thomas having to help this Japanese woman, Ami Yakura. She's a manga writer, and she's been framed for the murder of her rival."

Temperance frowned. "That sounds very similar to the plot of Daniel's novel."

"That's because it is." Alexis opened a new chapter, pointing to a line of text. "That's what you read dad…word for word."

Booth raised a hand to his forehead, rubbing his temple. "Angela…Angela said that Daniel's computer had been used to look at fan fiction sites."

"Oh my God." Beckett whispered.

"You mean…Daniel Keyes stole some poor fan fic writer's story and tried to pass it off as his own?" Castle asked.

"Almost word for word…the beginning has changes, but towards the end…he's just cutting and pasting." Alexis told them.

Booth turned to Beckett. "Call up the Jeffersonian, have Angela confirm that Daniel viewed this story." He pulled out his own phone and called up the FBI main office.

"What are you doing, Booth?" Temperance asked.

"I told you, I didn't like the stalker angle…but the ripped off writer…I like that angle very much." He turned from them, talking quickly. "Charlie, I need you to get the computer geeks online and see what they can get from and a story "Just East of West." I also want info on the author, his name, address…" Booth paused, "Yes, I want them to bring this guy in…as of right now, he is our prime suspect."

Martha looked at the screen, reading the author's name. "Ugh…what kind of name is Mr. Chaos?"

^&^&^&^

Author's Note: Ok, ok…before the pitchforks come out…yes, I myself will have a cameo in this story. But it wasn't originally that way.

When I first came up with this twist, I knew I would bring the fan fic writer in. I first was going to do a new character, then thought about letting another writer on this site cameo. But as I talked to people about how the character would act (and worrying the person I let cameo would be offended by having Sweets analyze them), a couple of people told me, "Why not just have it be yourself?"

After much debating about Gary Stus and such, I was convinced that my cameo would not be that, as you guys will see.

My hope is that this twist has not turned you guys off the story. Just know that when I make my cameo, I will not be solving the mystery or being a hero. I am doing this as if it were real…and if I were really brought in to be interrogated by Booth, I'd be wetting myself.


	10. Chapter 10

The next day found Booth and Beckett once more facing Maria Ordonez and Derek Prince. And once again, they were forced to present the two with bad news…though this time it was of a much different variety.

"You are sure this was posted before Daniel finished the book?" Maria asked, staring at the printed off pages from

Beckett nodded. "We had computer experts check, and they confirmed that the story was finished a good 8 months ago."

"Daniel had just begun writing." Derek whispered. "You believe that Daniel…stole this story?"

"We have…someone…that has read both the fan fic and the novel, and she states that as the novel moves on, it mimics more and more of the story written on the website…until it has, word for word, the final chapter."

"Oh my god." Maria whispered, holding her head in her hands.

"Mr. Prince…we uncovered some online postings to several gossip blogs that hinted that Daniel was suffering from Writer's Block. Did you see anything to confirm this?"

Derek took a long breath. "In all honestly?"

"It would be appreciated." Booth stated.

"I not only knew Daniel was suffering from Writer's Block…I am the one that leaked the information."

Maria looked like she had been slapped. "Derek…how could-"

"I'd done everything I could think of to help him break out of his funk. We discussed over projects, I had him reread his first novel. We listened to audio tapes and looked over artist concepts for the movie they wanted to do…he just couldn't break out of it." Derek lowered his eyes to the table. "I am not proud of what I did, but I did it for him."

"Really?" Beckett asked. "Mr. Prince, you have not had a best selling novel in 8 years. I imagine it is hard to continue living the lifestyle you are accustom too without a hit novel."

"Are you saying I leaked the information to fill my pocketbook?" He scoffed. "Next you will say that I killed Daniel as well!"

"Is that a confession?" Booth asked.

Derek narrowed his eyes, his body tensing. "Agent Booth, if you had bothered to examine my financial records, you would know that I am a consultant for several television shows, I write for Variety, and I am paid quite well for lectures I give at college campuses. Money is not an issue for me." He leaned forward. "The reason I leaked the news of Daniel's Writer's Block was to motivate him to get writing again. Most writers will tell you that the two things that drive them to write after a slump is praise or questions about their abilities."

"So it was just you…doing him a favor?" Beckett asked, her tone clear she didn't believe him.

"Tough love, Detective…that was all it was."

Booth nodded, dropping that line of questioning. "I'm just wondering…what would have happened if this news would have been discovered after the novel was published."

Maria frowned, her mind racing with the implications. "We are already facing a nightmare…we will lose credibility, there will be investigations… Daniel's publisher will be out millions recalling the books…"

"But it would have been worse if it got published. The lawsuits that would have come…" Derek shook his head. "This is a PR nightmare…but if the book had been published…we all would have been ruined."

^&^&^&^

(The Mandarin Oriental Hotel)

Castle let out a moan of pure, orgasmic pleasure. "God Temperance…so good."

Temperance smiled, it clear she was enjoying herself too. "Isn't it?"

"This…is the best…" Castle exclaimed, his whole body quivering with joy.

"Never tasted anything so wonderful, huh?" Temperance stated, licking her lips slightly.

"Never."

"Booth said the same thing." Temperance said, her voice husky.

Castle paused, eyes half closed as he tried to get control of himself. "Booth…you and him"

"Well…of course." She leaned closer to Castle. "He had the same reaction you are having."

Castle shuddered. "Lucky man…getting this any time he wants."

And with that, Richard Castle…

…took another bite of Mac and Cheese.

The two authors were seated at "Carlie's In New York", located deep within the hotel. Cartering to the ultra rich, the restaurant didn't even take reservations; instead, the restaurant would contact YOU, and ask if you wanted them to hold a table.

"So you knew the owner?" Castle asked.

Temperance nodded. "Carlie taught me how to make her Mac and Cheese…she was going to show me more, but she was murdered shortly after. When we solved the case, Carlie's husband said that I would have a table at any of Carlie's restaurants, whenever I wanted one."

Castle nodded softly. "I'm sorry about your friend, Temperance."

"Thank you, Richard."

The two sat awkwardly for several moments, unsure what the say. Normally, they would be able to chat with one another for hours…but with this case…the normal complaints about the convention were gone.

"So." Castle began.

"Yes." Temperance stated, feeling rather foolish for saying something that, too her, seemed little more than a placeholder for actual conversation.

"How do you think Beckett and Booth are doing?"

Temperance considered the question. "I am sure they are doing quite well…I can only speak for Booth, not Det. Beckett…"

"Oh, I'm sure she is doing fine…and Booth too." Castle said as they lapsed once more into silence. "Uh…did I tell you that Alexis read online that, before Daniel suddenly "came up" with his new novel, his publisher was going to drop him."

"No, I did not, but I can understand why. In my experience, publishers are not patient people."

Castle nodded. "Yeah…my ex-wife a prime example."

Even with people talking all around them, the quiet was deafening.

"So…I suppose we should…get down to business." Castle finally said.

"Yes…I believe now would be a good time." Temperance stated. "If you will get the check, I will go ahead to the room and…prepare."

"Oh right…prepare…that would be super." Castle turned to the side, whispering 'super?' to himself as Temperance left, she herself wondering why she had said 'prepare'.

^&^&^&^

Wendell shook his head. "To think, a day ago I thought this guy was the greatest writer alive."

Hodgins looked over at the intern-for-the-week and smirked. "Well, technically a day ago he was dead…"

Wendell nodded. "I've examined every inch of the bones…I've found no new information to help us find our killer."

"We did what we could…up to Booth and Dr. B to figure this out."

Angela walked up onto the platform, a stack of papers in her hand. "Well, Daniel's computer confirmed it." She laid the stack down in front of them. "I went through and ran a keystroke analysis; Daniel cut and paste more of this fan fiction into a word document and then made minor edits to spelling and grammar before saving it as his own work. He also spent a lot of time reading the reviews…probably wanting to see if there were any negatives in the story he could get rid of before publishing."

"We know anything about the poor bastard Keyes ripped off?" Hodgins asked.

Angela nodded, sorting through the stack. "Did some research. Mr. Chaos, as he is known, is really Kevin Allen."

Wendell frowned. "Kind of a generic name…going to be hard to find out more about him."

"Not really." Angela stated. " Did a bit of snooping a a Google search and managed to find him Facebook page."

Hodgins and Wendell began to pour over the info. "Kevin Allen…24 years old, college grad, he's a manager, member of several different message boards…"

Wendell looked at a picture of Kevin, which clearly photoshopped so that his head had been placed on Anakin Skywalker's body. "Doesn't look like a killer." Wendell said of the blond haired man with the neatly trimmed circle beard.

Angela nodded. "Looks more like one of us than a killer."

Hodgins looked up at her, the two of them remembering that one of them HAD turned out to be a killer.

^&^&^&^

Castle leaned against the headboard, staring at the ceiling. Draped in a thin sheet, Temperance lay as far away from him as possible, looking anything but relaxed.

"Well…that was…" Castle began.

"Yeah."

"That…has never happened to me before." Castle stated.

Temperance nodded. "Nothing to be ashamed off…natural body reaction."

Castle sighed. "Not what I want to hear, Temperance." He continued to stare at the ceiling. "Do you…want to try again?"

"…no." Temperance finally said.

"I will admit that…wanting to call you detective …was not a good idea."

She glanced at him, and Castle found Temperance Brennan doing something he had never seen her do before: blush. "Sorry about…crying out…"

"No problem…I always enjoy, when pleasuring a woman, hearing her scream "BOOTH!"."

^&^&^&^

Author's Note: Yes, that is my real name, and yes, I do have a facebook page with that image. Feel free to look me up.


	11. Chapter 11

"So…that is Mr. Chaos." Castle said, watching through the viewing window. "For someone claiming to be disorder…looks pretty clean cut."

Temperance had to agree with the statement. 'Chaos' was the last word she would use to describe the man before them. The 25 year old sat in the hard chair, fingers moving through his blond hair to scratch his head on occasion. He was tall, six foot 2 in his black sneakers, right leg bouncing up and down nervously as he looked about. His worn blue jeans and red mock turtleneck only gave hints to his lean form. A pair of wire bifocals rested on his face, which he adjusted now before tugging on his goatee.

She did agree with Castle.

"Don't assume anything, Richard…I've met enough clean cut killers."

Why she was arguing against him though…

"His name is Kevin Allen." Esposito said, looking over the file they'd made on the suspect. "Manager at a regional supercenter, considers himself a part time novelist working on getting his novel published."

"Before you ask, no, it isn't like anything Keyes was writing." Ryan stated. "Think a western with biblical overtones."

Temperance nodded. "Makes sense, actually." At their looks of confusion, she continued. "Fan fiction is a past time for him, something for enjoyment. If he views himself as a novelist, that being his profession, he wouldn't want to write something for pleasure that resembles his work."

Castle shook his head. "I don't know about that. You consider anthropology your work, and you think of yourself a writer second. Yet you allow work to be part of your hobby."

"Anthropology is something I enjoy, Richard…writing is work."

"Whatever you say, Temperance."

"He seems nervous…do you think that's because he is guilty?" Ryan said, not liking the sudden tension between the two writers.

Sweets, who had been quiet for the entire time, shook his head. "I am not for sure yet…it is possible he merely is agitated due to his arrival…the FBI did show up at his door and demand he come with them. That would cause anyone to be nervous."

"Unless they were sex female ones." Castle stated. "Then you would be nervous for a whole different reason." The others looked at him. "What?"

Temperance rolled her eyes in disgust.

^&^&^&^

Kevin stared at Daniel's newest novel, shock clearly written on his features. "It…totally ripped off my fan fic."

"Not the words I would use…but yes." Beckett said. "How do you feel about that?"

"Conflicted, to be honest." Kevin stated, still staring at the novel.

"What do you mean?" Booth pressed.

Kevin finally looked up at her. "On one hand, I had something I worked hard on stolen from me. It's happened before…writers will just copy my story onto some message board, give interviews about how they "came up with the story" and other crap…then I will find out and drive them away. It sucks, it's annoying, and I hate it." Before Beckett or Booth could leap on that fact, Kevin continued. "But on the other hand, my work was stolen by the actual creator of the characters. He thought I did such a good job at mimicking his style that no one would ever guess he hadn't written it himself. I mean…it's an honor…and annoying…like a cat burglar who one robs the superrich robbing your house."

Booth laughed slightly at the strange metaphor. "I suppose so. But you mean to tell me you had no clue he did this?"

"How would I?" He asked. "None of the spoiler websites were giving any clues about the book…bigger secret than the plot to "The Lot Symbol"."

"What about looking at who read your story?" Beckett asked.

Kevin laughed. "All I get from the site is raw data. The friggin' Pope could be reading my stories and I would have no clue." He leaned back in his chair. "But I am assuming there is more to this than me getting ripped off."

With shared looks, Booth and Beckett began to tell Kevin about the case.

^&^&^&^

"So Doc, what do you make of the kid?" Castle asked, crossing his arms across his chest. "Think he is our guy?"

Sweets frowned. "I can't be for sure at the moment, but he is being honest. He is offering up information that could damage him, but he is not doing in such a way that it appears he is doing it with motive."

"I don't understand." Temperance stated

"He's clueless what happened…he isn't playing dumb."

Temperance nodded. "Ah…like a killer that tells us he has a temper, merely to bait us."

"Exactly." Sweets stated. "From what I've read of Howard Epps, he liked to pretend death was a game. Mr. Allen in there is not doing such things…" He paused, touching the mic button. "Agent Booth, I believe Mr. Allen is being honest with you, but be careful…I get a vibe off him. Look at how his eyes are moving as Det. Beckett talks; he knows you guys think he killed Daniel, and he is figuring out a way to spin this to his advantage."

"Vibe?" Temperance asked after Sweets finished. "I don't like vibes, they aren't facts."

"Oh, I love vibes. They are like gut feelings but with a cool, bluesy touch." Castle stated with a grin.

Temperance glared at him. "Of course you would only care about vibes and not worry about the facts."

"What does that mean?" Castle asked, raising an eyebrow.

Temperance whipped around, poking him in the chest. "You don't care about facts or evidence. All you care about is what looks good on paper." She scoffed. "Is it any wonder so many critics say your books are pulp?"

Castle's ever present amused smile faded, and for Ryan and Esposito, they saw something they had never seen from Castle: Anger.

"Is that so? Well, I would rather have pulp than…how did the Boston Globe word it…a "stuffy lecture told by a woman who obviously has so little a social life that she must create one within her novels, when her oversexed heroine isn't boring us to tears!""

Temperance hammered right back. "That critic was a fool who didn't know a good book if it bite him on the posterior-"

"Ass, Temperance!" Castle roared. "It's an ass! You know it, I know it, they all know it…" he waved a hand at the startled Esposito and Ryan, Sweets itching to record the fight, "so just call it what it is!"

"I chose not to lower myself to your…level…by using such vulgarity…"

"Oh, for the love of God!" Castle exclaimed. He turned to Sweets. "Did you know, when I first met Temperance, she was being hit on by this drunken publishing agent? Want to know what she told him? It wasn't "Thou best leave my presence, before thou findth themselves removed." She said, and I quote, "I would not be caught dead kissing your fat ass in a million years!" Yeah, she swore, and she was vulgar…" He glared at Temperance, "I don't know what happened, but a few years ago you were almost normal…and then you began to turn back, until you've become so refined acting I think you are a Monty Python parody." He clapped his hands together right in her face. "For God's sake Temperance, you were funny! You joked, you pulled pranks, and you weren't as clueless about the world has you have us believe." He wagged a finger at Sweets. "Do you know what her favorite Television show is?"

"Dr. Brennan doesn't own a TV." Sweets stated.

Castle laughed. "Really…then why did you and your boyfriend fight over who got the TV when you got back from that dig a few years ago, huh?" He scoffed. "She owns a TV…how else would she watch her precious Transformers cartoons." He laughed. "Yeah, the oh so prim and proper Dr. Temperance Brennan is a fan of the Transformers! Loves Sunscream. And she reads comic books too…how else would she know all about Wonder Woman?"

Sweets jaw practically hung to the ground.

Temperance, fire in her eyes, drilled her finger into Castle's chest. "How I chose to behave is my choice, Richard. Not yours. So do not lecture me. I talk how I wish…it is not me acting better than others, but merely assuming they can handle it. Apparently, I was mistaken that you could. So let me make this simple: Butt out, asshole…or maybe I should tell people how little Castle couldn't rise to attention!" She stormed towards the door. "And his name is STARSCREAM!"

Castle rushed to the door. "Well maybe you should cry his name out during sex instead of Booth's!" Turning to stare at the others, Castle let out a huff and turned to go the opposite direction.

^&^&^&^

Kevin looked up. "What was that?"

"Nothing." Beckett said, concerned that she had heard the yelling too.

"Sounded like yelling." The fan fic writer said.

"It wasn't." Booth said, wanting to get to the task at hand. "Mr. Allen…you must realize how this looks. You story was stolen by Daniel Keyes, who is now dead…"

"And I…killed him?" Kevin asked, confused. "How? I was at work most of the time…and even then, shouldn't airport records show I never flew here." He paused. "I guess I could have drived, but if you look at my computer, you'll see I was online whenever I was not at work." He grinned. "I love Farmville."

Booth grinned. "Did you hear they are going to give us storage?" At Beckett's annoyed look, Booth reigned himself in. "It's possible you had a friend…"

"Agent Booth, I do not have a long list of friends. I enjoy my privacy. It doesn't help me avoid a murder rap, but it is true. I haven't even had anyone over to my apartment other than my family, and they can also verify their whereabouts. Everyone else works at my store or are more chat friends than anything." He ran his palm against his chin. "I never left the state of Michigan."

"You could have hired a hit." Beckett stated, trying to draw him in.

"How?" Kevin asked. "I'm a farm boy, Detective…I know more about how to tell the grades of chicken patties than how to call in a hit. I am not Tony Soprano."

"Mr. Allen, you had a motive…"

"About that…"

Sweets voice chimed in over their earpieces. "Here it comes. His spin."

"Do you have a copy of my story?" He asked. Beckett passed him one, and after a moment, Kevin pointed to the top. "Right here, I state I do not own the rights to "Western Front" or its characters. And right here…I give permission to use my ideas."

Booth and Beckett looked at the chapter, realizing they had totally missed that in the first chapter, so focused on the final pages where the majority of plagiarism was.

"Most authors include that at the beginning of their chapters. But I include the second because…honestly…I'd love for my ideas to be used. I write what I want to see…George Lucas said that, and I live by it."

Beckett frowned. "That may be-"

"Alright, cherie, back away from the kid."

Booth turned around, shocked. "Caroline?"

The tough as nails and queen of comebacks entered the room, looking at all three in annoyance. Caroline was the only person Booth had met that could make Temperance grow quiet like a child scolded. She entered a room and all paid her respect.

"Excuse me…" Beckett began.

"You are excused." Caroline said simply, narrowing her eyes. "Well, what are you waiting for…get going."

"I am not…" Beckett began.

"Yes, you are." Caroline snapped. "You are releasing my client right now."

"Your client, Caroline?" Booth asked. "How is he your client?"

Kevin stared at the woman, eyes wide in utter fear. "I think I'd prefer to stay."

Caroline shook her head. "No such luck, cherie. When you were taken in, your parents talked to a lawyer friend. She had other lawyer friends, who have other friends, who have more friends who are high up in Washington. And I get a call at 5 in the morning asking me to rescue your white behind. So you are coming with me, right now." She grabbed Kevin by the arm and hauled him towards the door. "Agent Booth, Det. Beckett, you have no evidence to link my client to the crime. If you continue this course of action, I will be forced to drag you through every court, and I will make it ugly."

Kevin grabbed onto the doorframe. "Really, no need…"

"I said come on!" Caroline shouted, leaving. Kevin, however, stared at them, pleading.

"I'd rather not go with the scary lady…" Caroline's hand lashed out, grabbing him by the front of his shirt. "Don't let it eat my heart."

And with that, he was yanked away, leaving a stunned Booth and Beckett in their wake.

^&^&^&^

Author's Note: To protect me incase either show steals this story: I do not own Bones or Castle or the characters, and offer the story up to them freely…all I ask is that I am acknowledged for the creation of the idea.

One reviewer mentioned that I was writing Temperance too clueless. Too bad I couldn't tell them I was laying it on just a bit thick (but not too much, if the current episodes are any sign) so I could have Castle and Bones' denouncement fights.

The fact Temperance reads comics comes from 1) Her costume in the Halloween episode 2) my first bones fic "The Anthropologist in the Watchtower", which I consider to be canon in my new Bones/Castle universe.

The fact that Temperance is a fan of Transformers comes from an idea I had before this story called, "The Boy in the Bot", where a custom action figure maker is killed at a convention and Booth arrives (sans Bones as she is on vacation) only to learn she was on vacation at the convention, where she is proudly wearing a decepticon t-shirt and is a avid fan of the show. Perhaps I will one day write that story as part of the Bones/Castle series.

Finally, I would like to confirm that, after I do "The Scrooge in the Lab Coat" I will be doing the sequel to this story, the Bones/Castle crossover entitled "The Three Deaths of the Theater Dandy"


	12. Chapter 12

Beckett walked up to a sulking Castle, taking a seat next to him and handing him a cup of coffee. However, instead of drinking it, he merely stared down at the floor, toeing a piece of tissue paper back and forth. She's never seen the writer in such a state before, looking utterly rejected. A small part of her, the part she kept locked in chains and hidden away from the light of day, thought he looked cute even when he was brooding.

"Am I a joke?" He finally asked, his tone somber.

"Huh?"

"Am I a joke?" He repeated. "Do you ever take me seriously?"

Any other time, in any other place, Kate Beckett would have cracked a joke. But just seeing the utter look of misery upon his face kept her from voicing the comment. Instead, she merely lick her lips, deciding to treat him like one of the many grieving families she had dealt with in the past.

"At time…you can be hard to take at face value…but there are times when you so you are more than the image you let the world see."

Castle sighed. "I let that image go on a little too long, I guess." He pushed the tissue paper back again. "Temperance and I got in a fight."

"I heard."

Castle winced. "Sorry."

Beckett said nothing.

"She…she said…it doesn't matter what she said, but she made it feel like everyone else in the world is important. They solve murders or examine dead bodies or help people with mental problems, and all I do is write books about fictional characters doing those things." He shook his head. "I don't know what is worse…that I don't have anything better to do with my life, or that I live through my characters."

Beckett frowned, not liking the direction this conversation was taking. "You solve murders all the time, Castle. Do I need to point out that the two of us have one of the highest case rates in New York."

Castle smiled weakly. "That's all you, Beckett." He shook his head in good humor. "I mean…you are so good at this. You live for this…all I do is throw out what I would do if I were writing the mystery. I don't solve it."

Beckett scoffed. "Castle, a lot of good cops do the same thing you do. We just don't word it like you do. For us, we create scenerios, based upon what we've seen in the job. Why do you think so many cops become writers after they retire? It's a parallel step."

Castle didn't say anything, pondering this over.

And to Beckett's credit…she let him.

^&^&^&^

"Hey sweetie." Angela said, answering her phone. "So listen, I got to the bottom of the whole Cam/Lanie relationship, and you will not believe…"

"Have I changed?"

"…huh?"

Temperance sighed. "Angela…based upon your memory of our interactions in the past, and comparing it to how I behave now, have I changed?"

Angela considered this. "Well…we all have. I mean, you are going out into the field, experiencing new things…"

"Angela." Temperance interputed, passing outside the evidence locker. If she turned to her right, she could have seen Beckett and Castle talking. Thus, why she went left. "Think back to when you and I first met…what was I like?"

Angela considered this question for several moments. "I don't know…you were really smart…into your work…didn't go out much…"

Temperance cut her off. "Angela…I owned a TV."

"…sweetie, I think this is one of those times where you already know something and just want me to confirm. So spill."

Temperance sighed in frustration. "I have been going over my past behavior, and something does not add up. When you first came to the Jeffersonian, I am the first to admit I was not the most welcoming."

"I believe you asked me, "Why would we need to pay someone that is little more than a glorified caricaturist?""

Temperance winced at that comment. "But I was wrong." She quickly said.

"Its ok, Bren."

"My point is, after you and I got to know each other, we began to do things. We went out, eat dinner, watched a movie, went clubbing."

"Probably the wrong time to admit this, but you do know I was trying to seduce you, right?"

"Yes, I knew. I weighed the pros and cons, but in the end I felt that I was better suited for sexual intercourse with a male."

Angela blinked. "Oh."

Temperance continued on her original path. "But…" She groaned, triyng to find the right words, "its hard to describe, Angela, but I was behaving…"

"Like a normal person?"

"…yes." Temperance finally admitted. "I mean, I use to have fun…I use to be able to interact with people. I might have not always got what they were saying, but I didn't let on." She shook her head. "I use to pull pranks! Remember the Homeland Security Agent?"

Angela laughed at that, remembering fondly Temperance saying "Boo" when the agent had found the skull in her backpack. "Yes, yes you did." She paused. "You know, I think that was the last time I saw you pull a prank."

"And what happened around that time, Ang?"

Angela's eyes widened. "You began working with Booth in the field."

"You know I hate psychology…and I hate myself for using it now…but I think…I think when Booth and I began to work together, I began to change." She shook her head. "He had this image of me as a squint that knew of nothing outside the lab and I just…went with it."

Angela sat down, her legs trembling. "Oh…my…God." She whispered. "You're right. I didn't even notice it, but you are right. Those first two years, you went from being normal in your own quirky way to being…a stereotypical squint!" She laughed. "I'm sorry I'm laughing but…God, I even blocked out how you use to be. You never use to tell people when you didn't get a reference, and you, and I am sorry to put it this way, never had quite as big of a stick up your ass as you did back then."

Temperance nodded. "I don't understand why, but when I began working with Booth, I changed. And only now, slowly, I have begun to come back to how I use to be." She leaned against the wall, staring up at the ceiling. "Though, I seem to have moments of slipping back."

"Like when you dated those two guys and didn't get why Booth was mad?"

"Exactly." Temperance paused. "Why is it that Booth seems to be connected to all these changes in my personality."

Angela took a breath. "Sweetie, I am going to tell you something, and you are going to try and dismiss me. I am begging you…please let me get this out."

"O-okay." Temperance said with a slight hitch.

"When you first partnered with Booth, it was a disaster. And I think, in the beginning, you didn't want him to stick around when he came back, begging you for help with that murdered intern case. So you began to play up your squinty side, to try and drive him away. But as you two continued, and you guys became friends, you saw how well you work together like that: You the brains and him the people person. So you kept going, becoming as far away from what Booth is as you could."

"But then…why did I begin to go back, if it was working so well?"

"Because you love him, and he loves you."

Temperance made some gagging sounds.

"Let me finished!" Angela scolded her. "I don't think either of you realized it…but you two had fallen for each other. And your subconscious realized that it would be wrong to start a relationship, but not for the reasons you think. It would be wrong…because you weren't who you were pretending to be. You were the hyperrational squint that knew nothing of the world that you acted like. It would be unfair to both of you to begin a relationship if you weren't…you." Angela let out a happy sigh. "So you began to go back, slowly, to protect your heart, to the way you were suppose to be."

"So…I could be with Booth." Temperance whispered, remembering in stark detail her shock hours earlier when the man she had been expecting to find pleasuring her was not her partner but Richard Castle.

"Exacly. And now that you know that…maybe its time you took a risk?"

"Hey Bones!" Booth called out.

"Angela, I have to go!"

"Bren, promise me-"

CLICK

^&^&^&^

Beckett finally spoke up. "Besides, Castle, you have something else the rest of us don't have."

"And what's that?"

"A family." Beckett stated. "Yeah, the rest of us solve murders and get to have guns ad all that stuff you want…but we all go home to empty apartments at the end of the day. You have a mother that loves you…in her own quirky way," Beckett smiled at that, and Castle let out a small chuckle, "and a vibrate, brilliant daughter. The rest of us, even Booth, mostly deal with death. But you, every day, help shape a life. And a fool, a joke…could never do as good of a job as you have done with Alexis."

Castle smiled, playing with his Homer's Ring. "Yeah…I guess that's true."

^&^&^&^

"Bones…Earth to Bones…" Booth waved his hand in front of Temperance's face. "You ok in there?"

Temperance blinked, snapping out of her stupor. "Oh…yes Booth…I'm sorry…"

"Hey, that's ok." Booth said, leaning against the wall next to her. "Probably counting Pi to the 25th number or figuring out how many parsecs it would take to do the Kessel Run." He glanced over at Temperance when she remained silent. "You aren't going to ask me what the Kessel Run is?"

Temperance gave him a slight smile. "No…I don't need you to. Thanks though." She looked down, playing with the ring on her finger.

"Hey, what's that?" Booth asked, pointing at the ring.

"It's the Homer's Ring…the one I won for 'Bred in the Bone'."

Booth frowned, rifling through the folder he had with him. "Weird…doesn't look like the Homer's Ring." He pulled out a scan. "I…guess it is the same…just looks funny."

"What do you mean?"

"Look…yours has 3 extra arms and an extra diamond."

Temperance took the scan from him. The ring pictured looked like hers, but was much simpler in design. "I've never seen this ring before…" She leapt up, racing past desks, Booth at her heels as she came to a stop next to Beckett and Castle. "Richard, let me see your ring!"

"Whoa, Temperance!" Castle exclaimed as the anthropologist grabbed his hand.

"See…our rings are different! His ring has this floral embellishment and slightly different arms."

Beckett frowned. "What are you…"

"Look at the scan…the rings change. They make the design more complex each year."

Booth frowned. "But Daniel's ring was more….basic than the ones you guys have."

Castle's eyes lit up. "Because that isn't his ring!" He wheeled towards Beckett, excited. "Don't you get it…oh, this is just too good of a twist!" He clapped his hands. "Daniel and his attacker fight…the attacker manages to get in a few good punches, but Daniel grabs the ring from his assailant's hand. Our murderer kills him…"

"And grabs the wrong ring." Beckett whispered.

"We match the ring…we have our killer."


	13. Chapter 13

Booth and Beckett sat at the interrogation table, Temperance and Castle behind them, watching the two law enforcement officers work.

Before them, Derek Prince could only stare at the ring that sat between them.

"You screwed up." Booth said simply, gesturing at the ring. "Even if you hadn't grabbed Daniel's ring, we would have still been able to trance the wounds to you."

Beckett nodded. "We found your shirt in the trash, Mr. Prince. It has Daniel's blood all over it, and our forensics team determined that the blood could only have landed as it did if you were slamming Daniel's head into the cement floor."

Temperance nodded. "He was still under the effect of the effects of drugs Paradise Jones had slipped him…it would have been easy for you to kill him."

"The only thing we don't know is the why…mind clueing us in?" Castle asked.

Derek just shook his head. "You…you know how much trouble leaked books can cause. Someone gets ahold of a new novel, posts the spoilers online, and sales can drop 15%. I'd heard rumblings that someone had done just that, so I went online to see if they were true." He closed his eyes. "Imagine my surprise when I find Daniel's novel already posted to a fanfiction site, written by someone else, and the story was a year old already."

"Daniel had been suffering from writer's block…he was desperate to get something turned in, before his publisher dropped him." Beckett stated. "He went trolling the fanfic sites to get ideas, when he stumbled on Kevin Allen's story. He figured no one would notice, so he simply began to change things around and claim credit for himself."

"He had been spending too much…he'd wasted everything he got from "Western Front" and the advanced for "East Meets West". He was deserpate…" Derek muttered more to himself than to anyone else.

"But he wasn't the only one that was going to get burned by this." Booth stated. "You had invested years in getting him to this point…he was your ticket back into the big leagues."

Castle nodded. "No one was reading your new books, and everyone thought you had passed your prime. Daniel was a chance to prove you were still important."

"But if it came out you had supported a plagiarist…" Booth commented.

Derek laughed darkly. "He laughed about it…when I found him. He was drunk and drugged, and when I confronted him on it, he just laughed in my face. He thought he could still get away with it…and he said if he did get caught, he'd pin it on me unless I kept my mouth shut."

"That's when you hit him." Temperance said. "He couldn't fight back…he was lucky to be even standing."

"When I saw him lying there, bloodied and still smiling…I saw my credibility fading away. I'd never be able to show my face after this…"

"So you grabbed his head and slammed it into the ground until that smile was gone." Beckett concluded. "Then you crushed him with the books, to try and make it look like an accident."

"You must have known they would still publish the book…" Booth stated. "That someone was going to put two and two together."

Derek smiled weakly. "Things went too quickly. I was going to buy that Mr. Chaos off…let me pretend he was Derek, testing out his new novel. He could get a new screen name…who would know?" He looked at Temperance and Castle. "I was the victim here…not Daniel."

"That's not for us to decide, Mr. Prince." Beckett said, moving behind him and hoisting him to his feet. "That is for the jury to decide."

^&^&^&^

"Angela…" Cam called out, motioning for the artist to come into her office. Angela entered, humming "Ride Me Hard", Phallic Friction's second major hint. She smirked as Cam motioned for her to sit, Lanie standing behind her by the now closed door. "I am hoping that you can be…discrete about all of this."

"About what…the case…the weather…you two being a punk rock girl band?"

"The last one." Lanie said.

"Its not that we are ashamed of our past…we just feel that some things are best left private."

Angela shook her head. "Oh no no no…this is too deliciously good to cover up. It this were a desert, I'd have gained 20 pounds off one bite." She grinned. "As I said…got to let your freak flag fly. Besides…we are all friends here…why not share everything about ourselves?"

Lanie took a step forward. "Is that so? You share everything?"

Angela chuckled. "I know where this is going…you think you've found something wild from my college days and want to use it to blackmail me. No chance…I am not ashamed of anything, and I always tell the wildest stories first and foremost."

Cam smirked right back. "No…nothing from your college days…" She turned her computer screen towards Angela, hitting start on the Youtube video.

Angela watched, with growing horror, as the footage showed a news report on a 'Twilight' DVD signing done by Robert Patterson a few months back. The footage showed a ton of young girls…and then a certain Jeffersonian artist shoving several 13 year olds out of her way so she could get her DVD signed, squealing with glee when Robert locked eyes with her.

Lanie smiled, placing her hands on her shoulders. "Now then…nothing to be ashamed about there, is there?"

Angela licked her lips nervously, knowing what ribbing she would take if Booth or Hodgins saw that footage. "Uh…truce?"

^&^&^&^

The next day found Temperance and Castle standing together, the mood awkward after that last encounter, waiting for Booth to finish filling out the last of the paperwork before him, Sweets and Temperance would make their way back to DC.

"Temperance…" Castle finally began.

"Richard…I did some examining of myself…and I am big enough to admit that I was wrong and that you were right. I have been acting differently…and it took you pointing it out for me to realize how wrong that is."

Castle smiled slightly. "I suppose I'm entitled to get something right about a woman, once and a while." He paused, letting the joke hang there for a moment. "Temperance, can I give you a piece of advice?"

"Only if I may do the same." Temperance stated.

Castle nodded towards Booth. "He's a good man…and I know how you feel about him. And I think you know, at last, how you feel. So maybe…just this once, you should actually take a risk…put your heart out there. Life is too short to live only through yoru characters."

Temperance nodded. "I believe you are right, Richard."

"And what is your advice for me, Temperance?"

She glanced at him. "If you ever wish to become involved with Det. Beckett, you need to learn to shut your mouth and listen."

Castle gave her a grin. "And here I thought my mouth was my most talented part."

"It is…short term. But I know you Richard…she isn't like me or any of the other women you take to your bed…this one you want to keep…and to do that, you need to use those listening skills I sorely lack but you have in such great supply…when you wish to use them correctly, I should said."

"Point taken." Castle said. "Are we good?"

"If you are asking if our friendship is stable, then yes, we are good…though I believe our meetings in the bedroom are over."

"Yeah, I figured as much…" Castle sighed. "Fun while it lasted."

Booth and Beckett walked up to the two, eyeing them carefully. "Why are you two so chummy again?" Booth asked.

Temperance smiled, walking over to him and hooking her arm through his. "No reason."

Booth stared down at their linked arms, confused but not wanting to question the gesture. He glanced over just in time to see Castle place his hand on the small of Beckett's back.

"So…I guess you will be leaving pretty quick…" Beckett said, "…it was…fun."

"She's lying, isn't she?" Temperance asked.

"Just a tiny bit." Booth said with good humor. He looked over the two New Yorkers' shoulders. "Just one last thing to do."

The others followed him over to the chief's office, where Caroline and a fidgeting Kevin were. Caroline was informing him that they would be dropping their lawsuit, and Kevin happily ditched the woman to go talk to the four.

"I hear congratulations are in order." Castle said, shaking Kevin's hand.

Kevin grinned. "Yup. Daniel Keyes' publishers are going to redo all of "East Meets West" to credit me as co-author and are giving me a nice pay check to go along with it."

Temperance nodded. "Rumor is they want you to continue the series."

"With the express rule that I not look at any fan fiction sites." He said with a smirk.

Beckett reached into her pocket. "I talked to Maria Ordonez…she said we should hand this over to you." She opened Kevin's hand, plopping the Homer's Ring into his palm. "Kevin Allen, on behalf on the North American Writer's convention, I award you Homer's Ring, in honor of writing their #1 Novel of the Year."

Kevin looked at each of them in awe before slowly slipping the ring onto his finger. "I…I don't know what to say."

Booth grinned. "You deserve it, kid."

Castle nodded. "And hey, next convention, make sure to look us up!"

"I will." Kevin paused, considering something. "You know…you and Dr. Brennan being friends gives me the wildest thought…have either of you ever considered doing a crossover?" He grinned. "Think about it…Nikki Heat discovers a mutilated body, and needs the help of Kathy Reichs in order to solve the case…I bet your fans would love to see yor two worlds come together."

Temperance and Castle shared a look before shaking their heads. "Nah." Both said quickly.

"Yeah…I don't think there is anyone that would want to read a crossover like that." Booth stated.

Beckett nodded. "I have to agree…I don't think their series should be mixed with the other."

Kevin shrugged. "Guess I'll just leave that to the fanfiction writers."

The four shared a look.

Yeah…like anyone would ever write a crossover like that!

^&^&^&^

Author's Note: Castle and Bones will unite again in "The Three Deaths of the Theater Dandy", this January.


End file.
